Which to use
“lecken” and “locken” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,906
- “lecken” frequency rank
- #6,692
- “locken” frequency rank
- 15598
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lecken | locken |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit der Zunge an einer Oberfläche herumfahren | Locken ins Haar machen |
Where the eye mixes lecken and locken
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses lecken with locken
A purely visual mix-up. lecken ([ˈlɛkn̩]) and locken ([ˈlɔkn̩]) 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 a single letter - e in “lecken” becomes o in “locken”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15598, 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]. locken is at rank #6,692, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈlɔkn̩].
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 15598, this pair ranks #1,942,594 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of lecken vs locken
Shared letters: cekln. Private to "lecken": -. Private to "locken": o.
"lecken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "locken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "lecken" for "locken" ever safe?
Which is more common, "lecken" or "locken"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "lecken" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "locken" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,942,594 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lecken" and "locken" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lecken vs lenzen". 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 #1,942,594 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.