Which to use
“abstauben” and “ausrauben” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #47,918
- “abstauben” frequency rank
- #31,943
- “ausrauben” frequency rank
- 79861
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abstauben | ausrauben |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Staub von etwas entfernen, etwas von Staub reinigen | jemandem alles wegnehmen; etwas vollständig (von Wertvollem) leeren |
Where the eye mixes abstauben and ausrauben
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. abstauben (VCCCVVCVC) and ausrauben (VVCCVVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses abstauben with ausrauben
A purely visual mix-up. abstauben ([ˈapˌʃtaʊ̯bn̩]) and ausrauben ([ˈaʊ̯sˌʁaʊ̯bn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 79861, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abstauben is recorded at frequency rank #47,918, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌʃtaʊ̯bn̩]. ausrauben is at rank #31,943, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌʁaʊ̯bn̩].
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 79861, this pair ranks #207,498 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of abstauben vs ausrauben
Shared letters: abensu. Private to "abstauben": t. Private to "ausrauben": r.
"abstauben" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVVCVC · "ausrauben" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "abstauben" and "ausrauben" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "abstauben" or "ausrauben"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "abstauben" and "ausrauben" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "abstauben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ausrauben" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #207,498 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abstauben" and "ausrauben" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abstatten vs abstauben". 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 #207,498 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.