Which to use
“lehnt” and “lernte” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,557
- “lehnt” frequency rank
- #5,866
- “lernte” frequency rank
- 12423
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lehnt | lernte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs lehnen | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs lernen |
Where the eye mixes lehnt and lernte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. lehnt runs 5 letters (CVCCC) against lernte's 6 (CVCCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses lehnt with lernte
A purely visual mix-up. lehnt ([leːnt]) and lernte ([ˈlɛʁntə]) 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 12423, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lehnt is recorded at frequency rank #6,557, classified as averb, pronounced [leːnt]. lernte is at rank #5,866, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈlɛʁntə].
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 12423, this pair ranks #1,964,286 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of lehnt vs lernte
Shared letters: elnt. Private to "lehnt": h. Private to "lernte": r.
"lehnt" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "lernte" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "lehnt" and "lernte" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "lehnt" or "lernte"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "lehnt" and "lernte" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "lehnt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lernte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,964,286 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lehnt" and "lernte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lähmt vs lehnt". 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 #1,964,286 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.