lästigvslästigenTell them apart

Which to use

“lästig” and “lästigen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#16,484
“lästig” frequency rank
#30,673
“lästigen” frequency rank
47157
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lästig lästigen
Definition auf unangenehme Weise störend, hinderlich Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs lästig

Where the eye mixes lästig and lästigen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

6 ch
lästig
8 ch
lästigen

Look-alike desk: lästig vs lästigen

A purely visual mix-up. lästig ([ˈlɛstɪç]) and lästigen ([ˈlɛstɪɡn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “lästig” sits inside “lästigen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47157, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lästig is recorded at frequency rank #16,484, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈlɛstɪç]. lästigen is at rank #30,673, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈlɛstɪɡn̩].

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 47157, this pair ranks #1,294,191 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of lästig vs lästigen

Shared letters: gilstä. Private to "lästig": -. Private to "lästigen": en.

"lästig" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "lästigen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "lästig" and "lästigen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈlɛstɪç] versus [ˈlɛstɪɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "lästig" or "lästigen" show up more?
"lästig" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,484 in our German list, against #30,673 for "lästigen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "lästig" and "lästigen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "lästig" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "lästigen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,294,191 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "lästig" and "lästigen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lästige vs lästigen". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,294,191 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list