nachlesenvsnachzulesenTell them apart

Which to use

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

#9,422
“nachlesen” frequency rank
#22,831
“nachzulesen” frequency rank
32253
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature nachlesen nachzulesen
Definition (noch einmal) (genau und sorgfältig) lesen; sich aus einem Text Information beschaffen erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs nachlesen

Where the eye mixes nachlesen and nachzulesen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. nachlesen runs 9 letters (CVCCCVCVC) against nachzulesen's 11 (CVCCCVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
nachlesen
11 ch
nachzulesen

Why the eye confuses nachlesen with nachzulesen

A purely visual mix-up. nachlesen ([ˈnaːxˌleːzn̩]) and nachzulesen ([ˈnaːxt͡suˌleːzn̩]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32253, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

nachlesen is recorded at frequency rank #9,422, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈnaːxˌleːzn̩]. nachzulesen is at rank #22,831, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈnaːxt͡suˌleːzn̩].

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 32253, this pair ranks #1,711,534 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of nachlesen vs nachzulesen

Shared letters: acehlns. Private to "nachlesen": -. Private to "nachzulesen": uz.

"nachlesen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCVC  ·  "nachzulesen" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • nachlesenanchlesen · nacchlesen · nachelsen · nachhlesen · nachleesn · nachlesenn · nachlesne · nachlessen
  • nachzulesenanchzulesen · nacchzulesen · nachhzulesen · nachuzlesen · nachzluesen · nachzuelsen · nachzuleesn · nachzulesenn

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "nachlesen" for "nachzulesen" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈnaːxˌleːzn̩] versus [ˈnaːxt͡suˌleːzn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "nachlesen" or "nachzulesen"?
"nachlesen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,422 in our German list, against #22,831 for "nachzulesen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "nachlesen" and "nachzulesen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "nachlesen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "nachzulesen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,711,534 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "nachlesen" and "nachzulesen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nachzulesen vs nachzusehen". 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 #1,711,534 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