layervsLeserTell them apart

Which to use

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

#31,150
“layer” frequency rank
#2,347
“Leser” frequency rank
33497
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature layer Leser
Definition Schicht jemand, der liest

Letter map: layer vs Leser

Shared letters muted; letters that set layer and Leser apart highlighted. Shared run: 3.

5 ch
layer
5 ch
Leser

Pair insight - layer / Leser

layer and Leser are indexed as a confusable German pair. We have no recorded pronunciation or part of speech for both members, so the spelling overlap is what we can show you: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33497, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

layer is recorded at frequency rank #31,150, classified as anoun, pronounced […]. Leser is at rank #2,347, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈleːzɐ].

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 33497, this pair ranks #1,684,703 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of layer vs Leser

Shared letters: elr. Private to "layer": ay. Private to "Leser": s.

"layer" · 5 letters · shape CVVVC  ·  "Leser" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • layeralyer · laeyr · layerr · layre · layyer · llayer · lyaer
  • Leserelser · leesr · leserr · lesre · lesser · lleser · lseer

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "layer" for "Leser" ever safe?
No. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, but the dictionary glosses above give them different meanings, so swapping one for the other changes what the sentence says.
Frequency check: "layer" vs "Leser" - which ranks higher?
"Leser" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,347 in our German list, against #31,150 for "layer". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

After this comparison

Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "layer" and "Leser".

  • Full dictionary entry for "layer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Leser" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,684,703 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "layer" and "Leser" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "layer vs puzzles". 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 #1,684,703 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