anziehenvsausziehenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#5,139
“anziehen” frequency rank
#9,328
“ausziehen” frequency rank
14467
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature anziehen ausziehen
Definition ein bestimmtes Kleidungsstück anlegen etwas (für jemanden) durch Ziehen entfernen

Where the eye mixes anziehen and ausziehen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. anziehen runs 8 letters (VCCVVCVC) against ausziehen's 9 (VVCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
anziehen
9 ch
ausziehen

Visual trap between anziehen and ausziehen

A purely visual mix-up. anziehen ([ˈanˌt͡siːən]) and ausziehen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌt͡siːən]) 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 14467, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

anziehen is recorded at frequency rank #5,139, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌt͡siːən]. ausziehen is at rank #9,328, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌt͡siːən].

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 14467, this pair ranks #1,951,024 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of anziehen vs ausziehen

Shared letters: aehinz. Private to "anziehen": -. Private to "ausziehen": su.

"anziehen" · 8 letters · shape VCCVVCVC  ·  "ausziehen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • anziehen ← anizehen · annziehen · anzeihen · anzieehn · anziehenn · anziehhen · anziehne · anziheen
  • ausziehen ← asuziehen · ausizehen · aussziehen · auszeihen · auszieehn · ausziehenn · ausziehhen · ausziehne

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "anziehen" for "ausziehen" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈanˌt͡siːən] versus [ˈaʊ̯sˌt͡siːən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "anziehen" vs "ausziehen" - which ranks higher?
"anziehen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,139 in our German list, against #9,328 for "ausziehen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "anziehen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "ausziehen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,951,024 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "anziehen" and "ausziehen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "andrehen vs anziehen". 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 #1,951,024 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list