löschenvslosgehenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#3,388
“löschen” frequency rank
#9,943
“losgehen” frequency rank
13331
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature löschen losgehen
Definition ein Feuer vernichten sich von einem Ort zu Fuß entfernen

Where the eye mixes löschen and losgehen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. löschen runs 7 letters (CVCCCVC) against losgehen's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
löschen
8 ch
losgehen

Look-alike desk: löschen vs losgehen

A purely visual mix-up. löschen ([ˈlœʃn̩]) and losgehen ([ˈloːsˌɡeːən]) 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 13331, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

löschen is recorded at frequency rank #3,388, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈlœʃn̩]. losgehen is at rank #9,943, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈloːsˌɡeːən].

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 13331, this pair ranks #1,958,670 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of löschen vs losgehen

Shared letters: ehlns. Private to "löschen": cö. Private to "losgehen": go.

"löschen" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC  ·  "losgehen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • losgehen ← llosgehen · logsehen · loseghen · losgeehn · losgehenn · losgehhen · losgehne · losggehen

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "löschen" and "losgehen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈlœʃn̩] versus [ˈloːsˌɡeːən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "löschen" vs "losgehen" - which ranks higher?
"löschen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,388 in our German list, against #9,943 for "losgehen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "löschen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "losgehen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,958,670 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "löschen" and "losgehen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Latschen vs löschen". 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 #1,958,670 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