linesvsLinienTell them apart

Which to use

“lines” and “Linien” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#21,343
“lines” frequency rank
#3,467
“Linien” frequency rank
24810
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lines Linien
Definition Plural des Substantivs line Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Linie

Where the eye mixes lines and Linien

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

5 ch
lines
6 ch
Linien

Visual trap between lines and Linien

A purely visual mix-up. lines ([laɪnz]) and Linien ([ˈliːni̯ən]) 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 24810, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lines is recorded at frequency rank #21,343, classified as anoun, pronounced [laɪnz]. Linien is at rank #3,467, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈliːni̯ən].

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 24810, this pair ranks #1,842,401 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of lines vs Linien

Shared letters: eiln. Private to "lines": s. Private to "Linien": -.

"lines" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "Linien" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • linesilnes · liens · liness · linnes · llines · lnies
  • Linienilnien · liinen · linein · linienn · linine · linnien · llinien · lniien

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "lines" and "Linien" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([laɪnz] versus [ˈliːni̯ən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "lines" vs "Linien" - which ranks higher?
"Linien" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,467 in our German list, against #21,343 for "lines". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "lines" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Linien" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,842,401 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "lines" and "Linien" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lines vs Loses". 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 #1,842,401 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list