LangeweilevslangweilenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Langeweile is a noun, langweilen is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Langeweile” is a noun and “langweilen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#9,401
“Langeweile” frequency rank
#22,807
“langweilen” frequency rank
32208
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Langeweile langweilen
Definition Gefühl der Untätigkeit, der Eintönigkeit jemanden/sich selbst so behandeln, dass sich bei ihm ein Gefühl der Untätigkeit, der Eintönigkeit einstellt

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Langeweile and langweilen apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
Langeweile
10 ch
langweilen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Langeweile is [ˈlaŋəˌvaɪ̯lə] while langweilen is [ˈlaŋˌvaɪ̯lən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 6 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32208, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Langeweile is recorded at frequency rank #9,401, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈlaŋəˌvaɪ̯lə]. langweilen is at rank #22,807, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈlaŋˌvaɪ̯lən].

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 32208, this pair ranks #1,712,444 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Langeweile vs langweilen

Shared letters: aegilnw. Private to "Langeweile": -. Private to "langweilen": -.

"Langeweile" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCVVCV  ·  "langweilen" · 10 letters · shape CVCCCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Langeweilealngeweile · lagneweile · lanegweile · langeewile · langeweiel · langeweille · langewelie · langewiele
  • langweilenalngweilen · lagnweilen · langewilen · langgweilen · langweieln · langweilenn · langweillen · langweilne

Frequency comparison

Langeweile#9,401
langweilen#22,807

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Langeweile" and "langweilen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Langeweile" is a noun and "langweilen" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Langeweile" or "langweilen"?
"Langeweile" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,401 in our German list, against #22,807 for "langweilen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Langeweile vs langweilen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Langeweile”; for a verb, it's “langweilen”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Langeweile” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list