Which to use
“aufbauen” and “aufzubauen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,677
- “aufbauen” frequency rank
- #5,911
- “aufzubauen” frequency rank
- 10588
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | aufbauen | aufzubauen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | eine bauliche Anlage errichten | erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs aufbauen |
Where the eye mixes aufbauen and aufzubauen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. aufbauen runs 8 letters (VVCCVVVC) against aufzubauen's 10 (VVCCVCVVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: aufbauen vs aufzubauen
A purely visual mix-up. aufbauen ([ˈaʊ̯fˌbaʊ̯ən]) and aufzubauen ([ˈaʊ̯ft͡suˌbaʊ̯ən]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10588, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
aufbauen is recorded at frequency rank #4,677, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fˌbaʊ̯ən]. aufzubauen is at rank #5,911, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯ft͡suˌbaʊ̯ən].
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 10588, this pair ranks #1,974,400 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of aufbauen vs aufzubauen
Shared letters: abefnu. Private to "aufbauen": -. Private to "aufzubauen": z.
"aufbauen" · 8 letters · shape VVCCVVVC · "aufzubauen" · 10 letters · shape VVCCVCVVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- aufbauen ← afubauen · aubfauen · aufabuen · aufbaeun · aufbauenn · aufbaune · aufbbauen · aufbuaen
- aufzubauen ← afuzubauen · auffzubauen · aufuzbauen · aufzbuauen · aufzuabuen · aufzubaeun · aufzubauenn · aufzubaune
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "aufbauen" and "aufzubauen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "aufbauen" or "aufzubauen" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "aufbauen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "aufzubauen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,974,400 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "aufbauen" and "aufzubauen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "aufbauen vs aufblühen". 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 #1,974,400 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.