Which to use
“längs” is an adverb and “langsam” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #18,976
- “längs” frequency rank
- #751
- “langsam” frequency rank
- 19727
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | längs | langsam |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | in der Längsachse | eine niedrige Geschwindigkeit aufweisend, lange Zeit benötigend |
Where the eye mixes längs and langsam
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between längs and langsam
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: längs is [lɛŋs] while langsam is [ˈlaŋzaːm]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adverb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 19727, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
längs is recorded at frequency rank #18,976, classified as anadv, pronounced [lɛŋs]. langsam is at rank #751, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈlaŋzaːm].
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 19727, this pair ranks #1,905,253 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of längs vs langsam
Shared letters: glns. Private to "längs": ä. Private to "langsam": am.
"längs" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "langsam" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- langsam ← alngsam · lagnsam · langasm · langgsam · langsamm · langsma · langssam · lanngsam
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "längs" and "langsam" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "längs" vs "langsam" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "längs" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "langsam" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,905,253 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "längs" and "langsam" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "längs vs largo". 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 #1,905,253 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.