abtragenvsaustragenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#49,443
“abtragen” frequency rank
#21,172
“austragen” frequency rank
70615
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature abtragen austragen
Definition schichtweise entfernen etwas verschiedenen Empfängern zubringen

Where the spellings diverge

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

8 ch
abtragen
9 ch
austragen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. abtragen ([ˈapˌtʁaːɡn̩]) and austragen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌtʁaːɡn̩]) 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 70615, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

abtragen is recorded at frequency rank #49,443, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapˌtʁaːɡn̩]. austragen is at rank #21,172, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌtʁaːɡn̩].

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 70615, this pair ranks #440,916 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of abtragen vs austragen

Shared letters: aegnrt. Private to "abtragen": b. Private to "austragen": su.

"abtragen" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCVC  ·  "austragen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • abtragenabbtragen · abrtagen · abtargen · abtraegn · abtragenn · abtraggen · abtragne · abtrgaen
  • austragenasutragen · ausrtagen · ausstragen · austargen · austraegn · austragenn · austraggen · austragne

Frequency comparison

abtragen#49,443
austragen#21,172

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "abtragen" and "austragen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈapˌtʁaːɡn̩] versus [ˈaʊ̯sˌtʁaːɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "abtragen" or "austragen"?
"austragen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,172 in our German list, against #49,443 for "abtragen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering abtragen vs austragen

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 “abtragen” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list