Which to use
“langen” is a verb and “Lanze” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,204
- “langen” frequency rank
- #22,413
- “Lanze” frequency rank
- 23617
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | langen | Lanze |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sich einem Gegenstand entgegen strecken, um ihn zu ergreifen | Waffe für den Nahkampf (als Stoßwaffe), aber auch im Fernkampf (als Wurfwaffe) wie ein Speer einsetzbar; lange Stange (mehrere Meter) mit einer Spitze aus besonders hartem Material |
Where the eye mixes langen and Lanze
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses langen with Lanze
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: langen is [ˈlaŋən] while Lanze is [ˈlant͡sə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23617, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
langen is recorded at frequency rank #1,204, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈlaŋən]. Lanze is at rank #22,413, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈlant͡sə].
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 23617, this pair ranks #1,858,875 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of langen vs Lanze
Shared letters: aeln. Private to "langen": g. Private to "Lanze": z.
"langen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "Lanze" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "langen" and "Lanze" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "langen" or "Lanze" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "langen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Lanze" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,858,875 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "langen" and "Lanze" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lame vs Lanze". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #1,858,875 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.