las vs Läuse, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#3,265
“las” frequency rank: #43,335
“Läuse” frequency rank: 46600
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	las	Läuse
Definition	1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs lesen	Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Laus

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set las and Läuse apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch

las

5 ch

Läuse

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: las is [laːs] while Läuse is [ˈlɔɪ̯zə]. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46600, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

las is recorded at frequency rank #3,265, classified as averb, pronounced [laːs]. Läuse is at rank #43,335, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈlɔɪ̯zə].

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 46600, this pair ranks #1,313,529 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of las vs Läuse

Shared letters: ls. Private to "las": a. Private to "Läuse": euä.

"las" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "Läuse" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV

Frequency comparison

las#3,265

Läuse#43,335

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "las" and "Läuse" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "las" is a verb and "Läuse" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "las" or "Läuse"?

"las" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,265 in our German list, against #43,335 for "Läuse". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering las vs Läuse

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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