Which to use
“leisten” and “lernten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,397
- “leisten” frequency rank
- #13,649
- “lernten” frequency rank
- 15046
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | leisten | lernten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sich selbst etwas Gutes tun, sich etwas gönnen | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs lernen |
Where the eye mixes leisten and lernten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. leisten (CVVCCVC) and lernten (CVCCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between leisten and lernten
A purely visual mix-up. leisten ([ˈlaɪ̯stn̩]) and lernten ([ˈlɛʁntn̩]) 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 15046, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
leisten is recorded at frequency rank #1,397, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈlaɪ̯stn̩]. lernten is at rank #13,649, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈlɛʁntn̩].
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 15046, this pair ranks #1,946,803 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of leisten vs lernten
Shared letters: elnt. Private to "leisten": is. Private to "lernten": r.
"leisten" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVC · "lernten" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "leisten" and "lernten" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "leisten" or "lernten"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "leisten" and "lernten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "leisten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lernten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,946,803 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "leisten" and "lernten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lenzen vs lernten". 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 #1,946,803 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.