lebendevslebenderWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#6,690
“lebende” frequency rank
#20,654
“lebender” frequency rank
27344
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lebende lebender
Definition Nominativ Singular Femininum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs lebend Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs lebend

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set lebende and lebender apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
lebende
8 ch
lebender

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. lebende ([ˈleːbn̩də]) and lebender ([ˈleːbn̩dɐ]) 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 1 extra letter(s) - “lebende” sits inside “lebender”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27344, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lebende is recorded at frequency rank #6,690, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈleːbn̩də]. lebender is at rank #20,654, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈleːbn̩dɐ].

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 27344, this pair ranks #1,803,295 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of lebende vs lebender

Shared letters: bdeln. Private to "lebende": -. Private to "lebender": r.

"lebende" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV  ·  "lebender" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • lebendeelbende · lbeende · lebbende · lebedne · lebendde · lebened · lebennde · lebnede
  • lebenderelbender · lbeender · lebbender · lebedner · lebendder · lebenderr · lebendre · lebenedr

Frequency comparison

lebende#6,690
lebender#20,654

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "lebende" and "lebender" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈleːbn̩də] versus [ˈleːbn̩dɐ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "lebende" or "lebender"?
"lebende" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,690 in our German list, against #20,654 for "lebender". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering lebende vs lebender

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “lebende” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list