aufführenvsaufzuhörenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#19,133
“aufführen” frequency rank
#17,514
“aufzuhören” frequency rank
36647
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature aufführen aufzuhören
Definition sich (schlecht) verhalten erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs aufhören

Where the eye mixes aufführen and aufzuhören

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. aufführen runs 9 letters (VVCCVCCVC) against aufzuhören's 10 (VVCCVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
aufführen
10 ch
aufzuhören

Look-alike desk: aufführen vs aufzuhören

A purely visual mix-up. aufführen ([ˈaʊ̯fˌfyːʁən]) and aufzuhören ([ˈaʊ̯ft͡suˌhøːʁən]) 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 36647, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

aufführen is recorded at frequency rank #19,133, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fˌfyːʁən]. aufzuhören is at rank #17,514, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯ft͡suˌhøːʁən].

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 36647, this pair ranks #1,610,209 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of aufführen vs aufzuhören

Shared letters: aefhnru. Private to "aufführen": ü. Private to "aufzuhören": zö.

"aufführen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC  ·  "aufzuhören" · 10 letters · shape VVCCVCVCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "aufführen" and "aufzuhören" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaʊ̯fˌfyːʁən] versus [ˈaʊ̯ft͡suˌhøːʁən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "aufführen" vs "aufzuhören" - which ranks higher?
"aufzuhören" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,514 in our German list, against #19,133 for "aufführen". 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 "aufführen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "aufzuhören" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,610,209 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "aufführen" and "aufzuhören" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "aufzuholen vs aufzuhören". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,610,209 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