Which to use
“aufzeichnen” and “auszeichnen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #29,478
- “aufzeichnen” frequency rank
- #20,177
- “auszeichnen” frequency rank
- 49655
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | aufzeichnen | auszeichnen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas auf etwas zeichnen | jemanden bevorzugt behandeln, indem man ihm/ihr etwas Positives zukommen lässt |
Where the eye mixes aufzeichnen and auszeichnen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence. aufzeichnen and auszeichnen follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VVCCVVCCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: aufzeichnen vs auszeichnen
A purely visual mix-up. aufzeichnen ([ˈaʊ̯fˌt͡saɪ̯çnən]) and auszeichnen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌt͡saɪ̯çnən]) 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 “aufzeichnen” becomes s in “auszeichnen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49655, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
aufzeichnen is recorded at frequency rank #29,478, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯fˌt͡saɪ̯çnən]. auszeichnen is at rank #20,177, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌt͡saɪ̯çnən].
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 49655, this pair ranks #1,203,239 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of aufzeichnen vs auszeichnen
Shared letters: acehinuz. Private to "aufzeichnen": f. Private to "auszeichnen": s.
"aufzeichnen" · 11 letters · shape VVCCVVCCCVC · "auszeichnen" · 11 letters · shape VVCCVVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- aufzeichnen ← afuzeichnen · aufezichnen · auffzeichnen · aufzecihnen · aufzeicchnen · aufzeichenn · aufzeichhnen · aufzeichnenn
- auszeichnen ← asuzeichnen · ausezichnen · ausszeichnen · auszecihnen · auszeicchnen · auszeichenn · auszeichhnen · auszeichnenn
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "aufzeichnen" for "auszeichnen" ever safe?
Which is more common, "aufzeichnen" or "auszeichnen"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "aufzeichnen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "auszeichnen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,203,239 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "aufzeichnen" and "auszeichnen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "aufzeichnen vs aufzuzeichnen". 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 #1,203,239 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.