Which to use
“lauschen” and “lauschte” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,314
- “lauschen” frequency rank
- #49,044
- “lauschte” frequency rank
- 67358
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lauschen | lauschte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | heimlich und aufmerksam einem Gespräch folgen | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs lauschen |
Where the eye mixes lauschen and lauschte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. lauschen (CVVCCCVC) and lauschte (CVVCCCCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between lauschen and lauschte
A purely visual mix-up. lauschen ([ˈlaʊ̯ʃn̩]) and lauschte ([ˈlaʊ̯ʃtə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 67358, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lauschen is recorded at frequency rank #18,314, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈlaʊ̯ʃn̩]. lauschte is at rank #49,044, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈlaʊ̯ʃtə].
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 67358, this pair ranks #542,770 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of lauschen vs lauschte
Shared letters: acehlsu. Private to "lauschen": n. Private to "lauschte": t.
"lauschen" · 8 letters · shape CVVCCCVC · "lauschte" · 8 letters · shape CVVCCCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "lauschen" and "lauschte" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "lauschen" or "lauschte"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "lauschen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lauschte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #542,770 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lauschen" and "lauschte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lauscht vs lauschte". 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 #542,770 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.