AbrufvsAusrufWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#25,869
“Abruf” frequency rank
#39,815
“Ausruf” frequency rank
65684
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Abruf Ausruf
Definition Aufforderung zum Verlassen einer Position, eines Amtes meist unwillkürliche, kurze, emotionsbetonte Äußerung

Where the eye mixes Abruf and Ausruf

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. Abruf runs 5 letters (VCCVC) against Ausruf's 6 (VVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

5 ch
Abruf
6 ch
Ausruf

Why the eye confuses Abruf with Ausruf

A purely visual mix-up. Abruf ([ˈapˌʁuːf]) and Ausruf ([ˈaʊ̯sˌʁuːf]) 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 65684, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Abruf is recorded at frequency rank #25,869, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈapˌʁuːf]. Ausruf is at rank #39,815, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌʁuːf].

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 65684, this pair ranks #598,551 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Abruf vs Ausruf

Shared letters: afru. Private to "Abruf": b. Private to "Ausruf": s.

"Abruf" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC  ·  "Ausruf" · 6 letters · shape VVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Abruf ← abbruf · abrfu · abrruf · abruff · aburf · arbuf · baruf
  • Ausruf ← asuruf · aursuf · ausrfu · ausrruf · ausruff · aussruf · ausurf · uasruf

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Abruf" and "Ausruf" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈapˌʁuːf] versus [ˈaʊ̯sˌʁuːf]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "Abruf" or "Ausruf" show up more?
"Abruf" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #25,869 in our German list, against #39,815 for "Ausruf". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "Abruf" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Ausruf" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #598,551 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Abruf" and "Ausruf" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Auslauf vs Ausruf". 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 #598,551 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