verleihenvsverlesenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#7,415
“verleihen” frequency rank
#19,753
“verlesen” frequency rank
27168
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verleihen verlesen
Definition etwas zeitweise jemandem überlassen einen Fehler beim Lesen machen; etwas falsch lesen; ein oder mehrere Worte beim Lesen verwechseln

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set verleihen and verlesen apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
verleihen
8 ch
verlesen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. verleihen ([fɛɐ̯ˈlaɪ̯ən]) and verlesen ([fɛɐ̯ˈleːzn̩]) 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 27168, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verleihen is recorded at frequency rank #7,415, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈlaɪ̯ən]. verlesen is at rank #19,753, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈleːzn̩].

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 27168, this pair ranks #1,806,200 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of verleihen vs verlesen

Shared letters: elnrv. Private to "verleihen": hi. Private to "verlesen": s.

"verleihen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC  ·  "verlesen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verleihenevrleihen · velreihen · verelihen · verlehien · verleiehn · verleihenn · verleihhen · verleihne
  • verlesenevrlesen · velresen · verelsen · verleesn · verlesenn · verlesne · verlessen · verllesen

Frequency comparison

verleihen#7,415
verlesen#19,753

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "verleihen" and "verlesen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fɛɐ̯ˈlaɪ̯ən] versus [fɛɐ̯ˈleːzn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "verleihen" or "verlesen"?
"verleihen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,415 in our German list, against #19,753 for "verlesen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering verleihen vs verlesen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “verleihen” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list