Which to use
“anführen” and “aufführen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,799
- “anführen” frequency rank
- #19,133
- “aufführen” frequency rank
- 37932
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | anführen | aufführen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | eine Gruppe von Personen oder etwas leiten | sich (schlecht) verhalten |
Where the eye mixes anführen and aufführen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. anführen runs 8 letters (VCCVCCVC) against aufführen's 9 (VVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between anführen and aufführen
A purely visual mix-up. anführen ([ˈanˌfyːʁən]) and aufführen ([ˈaʊ̯fˌfyːʁən]) 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 37932, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
anführen is recorded at frequency rank #18,799, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌfyːʁən]. aufführen is at rank #19,133, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fˌfyːʁən].
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 37932, this pair ranks #1,577,333 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of anführen vs aufführen
Shared letters: aefhnrü. Private to "anführen": -. Private to "aufführen": u.
"anführen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "aufführen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "anführen" and "aufführen" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "anführen" vs "aufführen" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "anführen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "aufführen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,577,333 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "anführen" and "aufführen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "anführen vs anrühren". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,577,333 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.