Which to use
“anfahren” and “ausfahren” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #26,744
- “anfahren” frequency rank
- #40,393
- “ausfahren” frequency rank
- 67137
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | anfahren | ausfahren |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | losfahren, ein Fahrzeug starten, zu fahren beginnen | (jemanden) mit einem Fahrzeug, Kinderwagen, Rollstuhl oder Ähnlichem auf einen Ausflug, eine Ausfahrt mitnehmen |
Where the eye mixes anfahren and ausfahren
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. anfahren runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against ausfahren's 9 (VVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses anfahren with ausfahren
A purely visual mix-up. anfahren ([ˈanˌfaːʁən]) and ausfahren ([ˈaʊ̯sˌfaːʁən]) 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 67137, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
anfahren is recorded at frequency rank #26,744, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌfaːʁən]. ausfahren is at rank #40,393, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌfaːʁən].
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 67137, this pair ranks #550,070 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of anfahren vs ausfahren
Shared letters: aefhnr. Private to "anfahren": -. Private to "ausfahren": su.
"anfahren" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "ausfahren" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "anfahren" for "ausfahren" ever safe?
Frequency check: "anfahren" vs "ausfahren" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "anfahren" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ausfahren" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #550,070 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "anfahren" and "ausfahren" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ausfahren vs Ausfahrten". 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 #550,070 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.