Which to use
“leihen” and “leiht” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #11,283
- “leihen” frequency rank
- #25,647
- “leiht” frequency rank
- 36930
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | leihen | leiht |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | eine Sache einer anderen Person für begrenzte Zeit zur Verfügung stellen | 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs leihen |
Where the eye mixes leihen and leiht
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between leihen and leiht
A purely visual mix-up. leihen ([ˈlaɪ̯ən]) and leiht ([laɪ̯t]) 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 36930, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
leihen is recorded at frequency rank #11,283, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈlaɪ̯ən]. leiht is at rank #25,647, tagged as averb, pronounced [laɪ̯t].
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 36930, this pair ranks #1,603,045 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of leihen vs leiht
Shared letters: ehil. Private to "leihen": n. Private to "leiht": t.
"leihen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC · "leiht" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "leihen" for "leiht" ever safe?
Frequency check: "leihen" vs "leiht" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "leihen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "leiht" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,603,045 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "leihen" and "leiht" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "leih vs leiht". 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 #1,603,045 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.