Which to use
“lock” and “locken” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,345
- “lock” frequency rank
- #6,692
- “locken” frequency rank
- 28037
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lock | locken |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs locken | Locken ins Haar machen |
Where the eye mixes lock and locken
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between lock and locken
A purely visual mix-up. lock ([lɔk]) and locken ([ˈlɔkn̩]) 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 extra letter(s) - “lock” sits inside “locken”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28037, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lock is recorded at frequency rank #21,345, classified as averb, pronounced [lɔk]. locken is at rank #6,692, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈlɔkn̩].
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 28037, this pair ranks #1,791,666 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of lock vs locken
Shared letters: cklo. Private to "lock": -. Private to "locken": en.
"lock" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "locken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "lock" and "locken" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "lock" or "locken"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "lock" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "locken" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,791,666 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lock" and "locken" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lock vs Lori". 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 #1,791,666 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.