Which to use
“laufe” is a verb and “laufend” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,851
- “laufe” frequency rank
- #12,528
- “laufend” frequency rank
- 14379
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | laufe | laufend |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs laufen | im Gange seiend, aktuell |
Where the eye mixes laufe and laufend
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. laufe runs 5 letters (CVVCV) against laufend's 7 (CVVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses laufe with laufend
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: laufe is [ˈlaʊ̯fə] while laufend is [ˈlaʊ̯fn̩t]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “laufe” sits inside “laufend”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14379, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
laufe is recorded at frequency rank #1,851, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈlaʊ̯fə]. laufend is at rank #12,528, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈlaʊ̯fn̩t].
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 14379, this pair ranks #1,951,610 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of laufe vs laufend
Shared letters: aeflu. Private to "laufe": -. Private to "laufend": dn.
"laufe" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV · "laufend" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "laufe" for "laufend" ever safe?
Which is more common, "laufe" or "laufend"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "laufe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "laufend" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,951,610 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "laufe" and "laufend" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "laufend vs laufendes". 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 #1,951,610 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.