Which to use
“Lees” and “Lehm” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #49,048
- “Lees” frequency rank
- #19,633
- “Lehm” frequency rank
- 68681
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Lees | Lehm |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Lee | quarzhaltiger, kalkfreier Ton, der reich an Eisenverbindungen ist; gutes Ausgangsmaterial für Keramik und Ziegel |
Where the eye mixes Lees and Lehm
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. Lees (CVVC) and Lehm (CVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses Lees with Lehm
A purely visual mix-up. Lees ([leːs]) and Lehm ([leːm]) 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 68681, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Lees is recorded at frequency rank #49,048, classified as anoun, pronounced [leːs]. Lehm is at rank #19,633, tagged as anoun, pronounced [leːm].
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 68681, this pair ranks #500,236 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of Lees vs Lehm
Shared letters: el. Private to "Lees": s. Private to "Lehm": hm.
"Lees" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "Lehm" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Lees" and "Lehm" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "Lees" or "Lehm"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Lees" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Lehm" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #500,236 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Lees" and "Lehm" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Lees vs Loses". 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 #500,236 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.