Which to use
“abzulegen” and “auszulegen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,151
- “abzulegen” frequency rank
- #31,445
- “auszulegen” frequency rank
- 52596
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abzulegen | auszulegen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs ablegen | erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs auslegen |
Where the eye mixes abzulegen and auszulegen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. abzulegen runs 9 letters (VCCVCVCVC) against auszulegen's 10 (VVCCVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses abzulegen with auszulegen
A purely visual mix-up. abzulegen ([ˈapt͡suˌleːɡn̩]) and auszulegen ([ˈaʊ̯st͡suˌleːɡn̩]) 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 52596, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abzulegen is recorded at frequency rank #21,151, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈapt͡suˌleːɡn̩]. auszulegen is at rank #31,445, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯st͡suˌleːɡn̩].
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 52596, this pair ranks #1,090,631 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of abzulegen vs auszulegen
Shared letters: aeglnuz. Private to "abzulegen": b. Private to "auszulegen": s.
"abzulegen" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCVCVC · "auszulegen" · 10 letters · shape VVCCVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- abzulegen ← abbzulegen · abuzlegen · abzluegen · abzuelgen · abzuleegn · abzulegenn · abzuleggen · abzulegne
- auszulegen ← asuzulegen · ausszulegen · ausuzlegen · auszluegen · auszuelgen · auszuleegn · auszulegenn · auszuleggen
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "abzulegen" for "auszulegen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "abzulegen" vs "auszulegen" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "abzulegen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "auszulegen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,090,631 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abzulegen" and "auszulegen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "auszulegen vs auszusagen". 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 #1,090,631 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.