Which to use
“loser” is an adjective and “lösten” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #13,889
- “loser” frequency rank
- #18,977
- “lösten” frequency rank
- 32866
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | loser | lösten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Positivs des Adjektivs lose | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs lösen |
Where the eye mixes loser and lösten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between loser and lösten
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: loser is [ˈloːzɐ] while lösten is [ˈløːstn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32866, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
loser is recorded at frequency rank #13,889, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈloːzɐ]. lösten is at rank #18,977, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈløːstn̩].
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 32866, this pair ranks #1,698,328 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of loser vs lösten
Shared letters: els. Private to "loser": or. Private to "lösten": ntö.
"loser" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "lösten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- loser ← lloser · loesr · loserr · losre · losser · lsoer · olser
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "loser" for "lösten" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "loser" or "lösten" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "loser" and "lösten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "loser" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lösten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,698,328 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "loser" and "lösten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Loses vs lösten". 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 #1,698,328 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.