Which to use
“Leck” is a noun and “leckte” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #12,120
- “Leck” frequency rank
- #39,504
- “leckte” frequency rank
- 51624
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Leck | leckte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | undichte Stelle in einem Gefäß oder einer Leitung, durch die dessen Inhalt (bspw. Flüssigkeiten oder Gase) austreten oder hereinströmen können | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs lecken |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Leck and leckte apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
Leck and leckte form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “Leck” sits inside “leckte” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51624, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Leck is recorded at frequency rank #12,120, classified as anoun, pronounced [lɛk]. leckte is at rank #39,504, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈlɛktə].
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 51624, this pair ranks #1,128,427 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Leck" and "leckte" be used interchangeably?
Remembering Leck vs leckte
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Leck”; for a verb, it's “leckte”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Leck” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable