Which to use
“leuchtende” is an adjective and “leuchtete” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #19,987
- “leuchtende” frequency rank
- #43,328
- “leuchtete” frequency rank
- 63315
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | leuchtende | leuchtete |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs leuchtend | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs leuchten |
Where the eye mixes leuchtende and leuchtete
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. leuchtende runs 10 letters (CVVCCCVCCV) against leuchtete's 9 (CVVCCCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses leuchtende with leuchtete
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: leuchtende is [ˈlɔɪ̯çtn̩də] while leuchtete is [ˈlɔɪ̯çtətə]. 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 verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63315, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
leuchtende is recorded at frequency rank #19,987, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈlɔɪ̯çtn̩də]. leuchtete is at rank #43,328, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈlɔɪ̯çtətə].
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 63315, this pair ranks #681,125 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of leuchtende vs leuchtete
Shared letters: cehltu. Private to "leuchtende": dn. Private to "leuchtete": -.
"leuchtende" · 10 letters · shape CVVCCCVCCV · "leuchtete" · 9 letters · shape CVVCCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- leuchtende ← eluchtende · lecuhtende · leucchtende · leuchetnde · leuchhtende · leuchtedne · leuchtendde · leuchtened
- leuchtete ← eluchtete · lecuhtete · leucchtete · leuchette · leuchhtete · leuchteet · leuchtette · leuchttee
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "leuchtende" for "leuchtete" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "leuchtende" or "leuchtete" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "leuchtende" and "leuchtete" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "leuchtende" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "leuchtete" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #681,125 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "leuchtende" and "leuchtete" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "leichteste vs leuchtete". 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 #681,125 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.