läutenvslöstenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#21,685
“läuten” frequency rank
#18,977
“lösten” frequency rank
40662
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature läuten lösten
Definition Geräusche durch das Bewegen einer Glocke hervorrufen 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs lösen

Where the eye mixes läuten and lösten

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. läuten (CVVCVC) and lösten (CVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

6 ch
läuten
6 ch
lösten

Look-alike desk: läuten vs lösten

A purely visual mix-up. läuten ([ˈlɔɪ̯tn̩]) and lösten ([ˈløːstn̩]) 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 40662, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

läuten is recorded at frequency rank #21,685, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈlɔɪ̯tn̩]. lösten is at rank #18,977, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈløːstn̩].

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 40662, this pair ranks #1,501,999 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of läuten vs lösten

Shared letters: elnt. Private to "läuten": uä. Private to "lösten": sö.

"läuten" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "lösten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "läuten" for "lösten" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈlɔɪ̯tn̩] versus [ˈløːstn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "läuten" or "lösten"?
"lösten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #18,977 in our German list, against #21,685 for "läuten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "läuten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "lösten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,501,999 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "läuten" and "lösten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Laatzen vs läuten". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,501,999 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