verlesenvsVerlustenConfusable pair

Quick tell: verlesen is a verb, Verlusten is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“verlesen” is a verb and “Verlusten” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#19,753
“verlesen” frequency rank
#15,778
“Verlusten” frequency rank
35531
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature verlesen Verlusten
Definition einen Fehler beim Lesen machen; etwas falsch lesen; ein oder mehrere Worte beim Lesen verwechseln Dativ Plural des Substantivs Verlust

Where the eye mixes verlesen and Verlusten

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.

8 ch
verlesen
9 ch
Verlusten

Visual trap between verlesen and Verlusten

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: verlesen is [fɛɐ̯ˈleːzn̩] while Verlusten is [fɛɐ̯ˈlʊstn̩]. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35531, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

verlesen is recorded at frequency rank #19,753, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈleːzn̩]. Verlusten is at rank #15,778, tagged as anoun, pronounced [fɛɐ̯ˈlʊstn̩].

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 35531, this pair ranks #1,637,753 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of verlesen vs Verlusten

Shared letters: elnrsv. Private to "verlesen": -. Private to "Verlusten": tu.

"verlesen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "Verlusten" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • verlesenevrlesen · velresen · verelsen · verleesn · verlesenn · verlesne · verlessen · verllesen
  • Verlustenevrlusten · velrusten · verllusten · verlsuten · verlusetn · verlussten · verlustenn · verlustne

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "verlesen" for "Verlusten" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "verlesen" is a verb and "Verlusten" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "verlesen" vs "Verlusten" - which ranks higher?
"Verlusten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,778 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.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "verlesen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Verlusten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,637,753 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "verlesen" and "Verlusten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Verlusten vs Verlustes". 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 #1,637,753 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