aufpassenvsauslassenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#5,243
“aufpassen” frequency rank
#22,632
“auslassen” frequency rank
27875
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature aufpassen auslassen
Definition etwas aufmerksam verfolgen aus einer Menge etwas nicht heranziehen, nicht verwenden

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set aufpassen and auslassen apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
aufpassen
9 ch
auslassen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. aufpassen ([ˈaʊ̯fˌpasn̩]) and auslassen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌlasn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27875, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

aufpassen is recorded at frequency rank #5,243, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fˌpasn̩]. auslassen is at rank #22,632, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌlasn̩].

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 27875, this pair ranks #1,794,402 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of aufpassen vs auslassen

Shared letters: aensu. Private to "aufpassen": fp. Private to "auslassen": l.

"aufpassen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC  ·  "auslassen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • aufpassenafupassen · aufapssen · auffpassen · aufpasen · aufpasesn · aufpassenn · aufpassne · aufpaßen
  • auslassenasulassen · aulsassen · ausalssen · auslasen · auslasesn · auslassenn · auslassne · auslaßen

Frequency comparison

aufpassen#5,243
auslassen#22,632

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "aufpassen" and "auslassen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaʊ̯fˌpasn̩] versus [ˈaʊ̯sˌlasn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "aufpassen" or "auslassen"?
"aufpassen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,243 in our German list, against #22,632 for "auslassen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering aufpassen vs auslassen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “aufpassen” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list