Which to use
“ablaufen” and “auslaufen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #13,298
- “ablaufen” frequency rank
- #17,226
- “auslaufen” frequency rank
- 30524
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ablaufen | auslaufen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | zu laufen beginnen | als Flüssigkeit aus einer Öffnung austreten |
Where the eye mixes ablaufen and auslaufen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses ablaufen with auslaufen
A purely visual mix-up. ablaufen ([ˈapˌlaʊ̯fn̩]) and auslaufen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌlaʊ̯fn̩]) 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 30524, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ablaufen is recorded at frequency rank #13,298, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌlaʊ̯fn̩]. auslaufen is at rank #17,226, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌlaʊ̯fn̩].
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 30524, this pair ranks #1,746,151 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ablaufen vs auslaufen
Shared letters: aeflnu. Private to "ablaufen": b. Private to "auslaufen": s.
"ablaufen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVVCVC · "auslaufen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ablaufen" for "auslaufen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "ablaufen" or "auslaufen" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "ablaufen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "auslaufen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,746,151 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ablaufen" and "auslaufen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ablaufen vs Anläufe". 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 #1,746,151 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.