Which to use
“anrufen” and “anruft” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,017
- “anrufen” frequency rank
- #19,817
- “anruft” frequency rank
- 23834
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | anrufen | anruft |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | auf sich aufmerksam machen, indem man ruft; jemanden namentlich rufen | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs anrufen |
Where the eye mixes anrufen and anruft
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. anrufen runs 7 letters (VCCVCVC) against anruft's 6 (VCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: anrufen vs anruft
A purely visual mix-up. anrufen ([ˈanˌʁuːfn̩]) and anruft ([ˈanˌʁuːft]) 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 23834, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
anrufen is recorded at frequency rank #4,017, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌʁuːfn̩]. anruft is at rank #19,817, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌʁuːft].
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 23834, this pair ranks #1,856,014 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of anrufen vs anruft
Shared letters: afnru. Private to "anrufen": e. Private to "anruft": t.
"anrufen" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC · "anruft" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "anrufen" for "anruft" ever safe?
Frequency check: "anrufen" vs "anruft" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "anrufen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "anruft" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,856,014 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "anrufen" and "anruft" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "anruft vs antut". 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 #1,856,014 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.