lockerenvslockererConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#19,989
“lockeren” frequency rank
#16,772
“lockerer” frequency rank
36761
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lockeren lockerer
Definition Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs locker Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs locker

Where the eye mixes lockeren and lockerer

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. lockeren and lockerer follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

8 ch
lockeren
8 ch
lockerer

Why the eye confuses lockeren with lockerer

A purely visual mix-up. lockeren ([ˈlɔkəʁən]) and lockerer ([ˈlɔkəʁɐ]) 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 a single letter - n in “lockeren” becomes r in “lockerer”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36761, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lockeren is recorded at frequency rank #19,989, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈlɔkəʁən]. lockerer is at rank #16,772, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈlɔkəʁɐ].

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 36761, this pair ranks #1,607,327 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of lockeren vs lockerer

Shared letters: ceklor. Private to "lockeren": n. Private to "lockerer": -.

"lockeren" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "lockerer" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • lockerenlcokeren · llockeren · locckeren · locekren · lockeern · lockerenn · lockerne · lockerren
  • lockererlcokerer · llockerer · locckerer · locekrer · lockeerr · lockererr · lockerre · lockerrer

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "lockeren" for "lockerer" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈlɔkəʁən] versus [ˈlɔkəʁɐ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "lockeren" vs "lockerer" - which ranks higher?
"lockerer" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,772 in our German list, against #19,989 for "lockeren". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "lockeren" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "lockerer" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,607,327 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "lockeren" and "lockerer" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lackieren vs lockeren". 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 #1,607,327 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