leerenvslenzenTell them apart

Which to use

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

#5,198
“leeren” frequency rank
#49,051
“lenzen” frequency rank
54249
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature leeren lenzen
Definition den Inhalt verbrauchen oder entfernen Wasser aus einem Boots- oder Schiffskörper entfernen

Where the eye mixes leeren and lenzen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. leeren (CVVCVC) and lenzen (CVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

6 ch
leeren
6 ch
lenzen

Visual trap between leeren and lenzen

A purely visual mix-up. leeren ([ˈleːʁən]) and lenzen ([ˈlɛnt͡sn̩]) 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 54249, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

leeren is recorded at frequency rank #5,198, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈleːʁən]. lenzen is at rank #49,051, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈlɛnt͡sn̩].

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 54249, this pair ranks #1,026,182 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of leeren vs lenzen

Shared letters: eln. Private to "leeren": r. Private to "lenzen": z.

"leeren" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "lenzen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • leeren ← eleren · leeern · leerenn · leerne · leerren · lereen · leren · lleeren
  • lenzen ← elnzen · lenezn · lennzen · lenzenn · lenzne · lenzzen · leznen · llenzen

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "leeren" and "lenzen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈleːʁən] versus [ˈlɛnt͡sn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "leeren" vs "lenzen" - which ranks higher?
"leeren" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,198 in our German list, against #49,051 for "lenzen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "leeren" and "lenzen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "leeren" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "lenzen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,026,182 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "leeren" and "lenzen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lenzen vs letten". 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 #1,026,182 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