Which to use
“lehnen” and “lehnten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,403
- “lehnen” frequency rank
- #23,213
- “lehnten” frequency rank
- 32616
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lehnen | lehnten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | den Körper schräg stellen | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum des Verbs lehnen |
Where the eye mixes lehnen and lehnten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. lehnen runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against lehnten's 7 (CVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses lehnen with lehnten
A purely visual mix-up. lehnen ([ˈleːnən]) and lehnten ([ˈleːntn̩]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32616, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lehnen is recorded at frequency rank #9,403, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈleːnən]. lehnten is at rank #23,213, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈleːntn̩].
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 32616, this pair ranks #1,703,796 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of lehnen vs lehnten
Shared letters: ehln. Private to "lehnen": -. Private to "lehnten": t.
"lehnen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "lehnten" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "lehnen" for "lehnten" ever safe?
Which is more common, "lehnen" or "lehnten"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "lehnen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lehnten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,703,796 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lehnen" and "lehnten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lehnten 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 #1,703,796 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.