Which to use
“lecken” and “leckte” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,906
- “lecken” frequency rank
- #39,504
- “leckte” frequency rank
- 48410
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lecken | leckte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit der Zunge an einer Oberfläche herumfahren | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs lecken |
Where the eye mixes lecken and leckte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses lecken with leckte
A purely visual mix-up. lecken ([ˈlɛkn̩]) and leckte ([ˈlɛktə]) 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 48410, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lecken is recorded at frequency rank #8,906, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈlɛkn̩]. 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 48410, this pair ranks #1,249,574 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of lecken vs leckte
Shared letters: cekl. Private to "lecken": n. Private to "leckte": t.
"lecken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "leckte" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "lecken" and "leckte" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "lecken" or "leckte"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "lecken" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "leckte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,249,574 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lecken" and "leckte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Lacke vs leckte". 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 #1,249,574 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.