api vs auf, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“api” is a noun and “auf” is a preposition - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#20,828
“api” frequency rank: #15
“auf” frequency rank: 20843
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	api	auf
Definition	Feuer; Hitze und Licht, das von etwas ausgeht, das brennt	an der Oberseite von etwas

Letter map: api vs auf

Shared letters muted; letters that set api and auf apart highlighted. Shared run: 1.

3 ch

api

3 ch

auf

Grammar separator: api vs auf

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: api is anoun and aufapreposition. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20843, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

api is recorded at frequency rank #20,828, classified as anoun, pronounced […]. auf is at rank #15, tagged as aprep, pronounced [aʊ̯f].

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 20843, this pair ranks #1,893,093 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of api vs auf

Shared letters: a. Private to "api": ip. Private to "auf": fu.

"api" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "auf" · 3 letters · shape VVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "api" and "auf" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "api" is a noun and "auf" a preposition, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Frequency check: "api" vs "auf" - which ranks higher?

"auf" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15 in our German list, against #20,828 for "api". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Useful next steps

Pair "api" vs "auf" is on the table, pick a follow-up below.

Full dictionary entry for "api" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
Full dictionary entry for "auf" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
This pair ranks #1,893,093 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
"api" and "auf" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "api vs puzzles". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,893,093 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.