Which to use
“langsam” is an adjective and “längst” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #751
- “langsam” frequency rank
- #1,520
- “längst” frequency rank
- 2271
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | langsam | längst |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | eine niedrige Geschwindigkeit aufweisend, lange Zeit benötigend | schon lange, seit langem, seit langer/längerer Zeit |
Where the eye mixes langsam and längst
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between langsam and längst
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: langsam is [ˈlaŋzaːm] while längst is [lɛŋst]. 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 (adjective vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2271, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
langsam is recorded at frequency rank #751, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈlaŋzaːm]. längst is at rank #1,520, tagged as anadv, pronounced [lɛŋst].
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 2271, this pair ranks #2,002,732 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of langsam vs längst
Shared letters: glns. Private to "langsam": am. Private to "längst": tä.
"langsam" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC · "längst" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- langsam ← alngsam · lagnsam · langasm · langgsam · langsamm · langsma · langssam · lanngsam
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "langsam" and "längst" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "langsam" vs "längst" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "langsam" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "längst" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #2,002,732 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "langsam" and "längst" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lädst vs längst". 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 #2,002,732 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.