Which to use
“Leutnant” and “lieutenant” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,686
- “Leutnant” frequency rank
- #14,122
- “lieutenant” frequency rank
- 24808
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Leutnant | lieutenant |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Offiziersdienstgrad unter dem Oberleutnant, der untere Dienstgrad variiert nach Streitkraft | der Dienstgrad zwischen captain (Hauptmann) und second lieutenant (Unterleutnant); in den USA wird es auch first lieutenant genannt; der Leutnant, der Oberleutnant |
Where the eye mixes Leutnant and lieutenant
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. Leutnant runs 8 letters (CVVCCVCC) against lieutenant's 10 (CVVVCVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between Leutnant and lieutenant
A purely visual mix-up. Leutnant ([ˈlɔɪ̯tnant]) and lieutenant ([lɛfˈtɛnənt]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 24808, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Leutnant is recorded at frequency rank #10,686, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈlɔɪ̯tnant]. lieutenant is at rank #14,122, tagged as anoun, pronounced [lɛfˈtɛnənt].
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 24808, this pair ranks #1,842,428 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Leutnant vs lieutenant
Shared letters: aelntu. Private to "Leutnant": -. Private to "lieutenant": i.
"Leutnant" · 8 letters · shape CVVCCVCC · "lieutenant" · 10 letters · shape CVVVCVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Leutnant ← elutnant · letunant · leuntant · leutannt · leutnannt · leutnantt · leutnatn · leutnnant
- lieutenant ← ileutenant · leiutenant · lietuenant · lieuetnant · lieuteannt · lieutenannt · lieutenantt · lieutenatn
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Leutnant" and "lieutenant" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "Leutnant" or "lieutenant" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "Leutnant" and "lieutenant" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Leutnant" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lieutenant" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,842,428 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- 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 #1,842,428 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.