AuffahrtvsAutofahrtWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#25,445
“Auffahrt” frequency rank
#28,085
“Autofahrt” frequency rank
53530
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Auffahrt Autofahrt
Definition ansteigender Straßenabschnitt, der zu etwas hinführt Fahrt mit einem Auto

Where the eye mixes Auffahrt and Autofahrt

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

8 ch
Auffahrt
9 ch
Autofahrt

Why the eye confuses Auffahrt with Autofahrt

A purely visual mix-up. Auffahrt ([ˈaʊ̯fˌfaːɐ̯t]) and Autofahrt ([ˈaʊ̯toˌfaːɐ̯t]) 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 53530, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Auffahrt is recorded at frequency rank #25,445, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fˌfaːɐ̯t]. Autofahrt is at rank #28,085, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯toˌfaːɐ̯t].

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 53530, this pair ranks #1,054,364 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Auffahrt vs Autofahrt

Shared letters: afhrtu. Private to "Auffahrt": -. Private to "Autofahrt": o.

"Auffahrt" · 8 letters · shape VVCCVCCC  ·  "Autofahrt" · 9 letters · shape VVCVCVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Auffahrt ← afufahrt · aufafhrt · aufahrt · auffahhrt · auffahrrt · auffahrtt · auffahtr · auffarht
  • Autofahrt ← atuofahrt · auotfahrt · autfoahrt · autoafhrt · autofahhrt · autofahrrt · autofahrtt · autofahtr

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Auffahrt" and "Autofahrt" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaʊ̯fˌfaːɐ̯t] versus [ˈaʊ̯toˌfaːɐ̯t]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Auffahrt" vs "Autofahrt" - which ranks higher?
"Auffahrt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #25,445 in our German list, against #28,085 for "Autofahrt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Auffahrt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Autofahrt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,054,364 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Auffahrt" and "Autofahrt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Auffahrt vs aufführt". 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 #1,054,364 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