LanzevslenzenWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#22,413
“Lanze” frequency rank
#49,051
“lenzen” frequency rank
71464
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Lanze lenzen
Definition 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 Wasser aus einem Boots- oder Schiffskörper entfernen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Lanze and lenzen apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
Lanze
6 ch
lenzen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Lanze is [ˈlant͡sə] while lenzen is [ˈlɛnt͡sn̩]. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 71464, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Lanze is recorded at frequency rank #22,413, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈlant͡sə]. lenzen is at rank #49,051, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈlɛnt͡sn̩].

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 71464, this pair ranks #416,007 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Lanze vs lenzen

Shared letters: elnz. Private to "Lanze": a. Private to "lenzen": -.

"Lanze" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "lenzen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Lanzealnze · lanez · lannze · lanzze · lazne · llanze · lnaze
  • lenzenelnzen · lenezn · lennzen · lenzenn · lenzne · lenzzen · leznen · llenzen

Frequency comparison

Lanze#22,413
lenzen#49,051

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Lanze" and "lenzen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Lanze" is a noun and "lenzen" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Lanze" or "lenzen"?
"Lanze" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #22,413 in our German list, against #49,051 for "lenzen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Lanze vs lenzen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Lanze”; for a verb, it's “lenzen”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Lanze” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list