aufhältvsaushältWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#17,510
“aufhält” frequency rank
#32,426
“aushält” frequency rank
49936
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature aufhält aushält
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs aufhalten 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs aushalten

Where the eye mixes aufhält and aushält

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. aufhält and aushält follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VVCCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

7 ch
aufhält
7 ch
aushält

Look-alike desk: aufhält vs aushält

A purely visual mix-up. aufhält ([ˈaʊ̯fˌhɛlt]) and aushält ([ˈaʊ̯shɛlt]) 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 a single letter - f in “aufhält” becomes s in “aushält”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49936, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

aufhält is recorded at frequency rank #17,510, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fˌhɛlt]. aushält is at rank #32,426, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯shɛlt].

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 49936, this pair ranks #1,192,777 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of aufhält vs aushält

Shared letters: ahltuä. Private to "aufhält": f. Private to "aushält": s.

"aufhält" · 7 letters · shape VVCCVCC  ·  "aushält" · 7 letters · shape VVCCVCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "aufhält" and "aushält" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaʊ̯fˌhɛlt] versus [ˈaʊ̯shɛlt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "aufhält" vs "aushält" - which ranks higher?
"aufhält" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,510 in our German list, against #32,426 for "aushält". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "aufhält" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "aushält" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,192,777 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "aufhält" and "aushält" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "aushält vs auszahlt". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,192,777 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