legervsLenkerWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: leger is a adjective, Lenker is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“leger” is an adjective and “Lenker” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#46,108
“leger” frequency rank
#16,479
“Lenker” frequency rank
62587
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature leger Lenker
Definition leicht, bequem (meist in Zusammenhang mit Kleidung) Einrichtung zum Steuern eines Fahrzeuges

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set leger and Lenker apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
leger
6 ch
Lenker

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: leger is [leˈʒɛːɐ̯] while Lenker is [ˈlɛŋkɐ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 62587, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

leger is recorded at frequency rank #46,108, classified as anadj, pronounced [leˈʒɛːɐ̯]. Lenker is at rank #16,479, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈlɛŋkɐ].

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 62587, this pair ranks #707,414 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of leger vs Lenker

Shared letters: elr. Private to "leger": g. Private to "Lenker": kn.

"leger" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "Lenker" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • legerelger · leegr · legerr · legger · legre · lgeer · lleger
  • Lenkerelnker · lekner · lenekr · lenkerr · lenkker · lenkre · lennker · llenker

Frequency comparison

leger#46,108
Lenker#16,479

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "leger" and "Lenker" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "leger" is an adjective and "Lenker" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "leger" or "Lenker"?
"Lenker" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,479 in our German list, against #46,108 for "leger". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering leger vs Lenker

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “leger”; for a noun, it's “Lenker”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “leger” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list