AusdrückevsausdrückteWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Ausdrücke is a noun, ausdrückte is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Ausdrücke” is a noun and “ausdrückte” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#17,815
“Ausdrücke” frequency rank
#43,024
“ausdrückte” frequency rank
60839
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Ausdrücke ausdrückte
Definition Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Ausdruck 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs ausdrücken

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Ausdrücke and ausdrückte apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
Ausdrücke
10 ch
ausdrückte

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Ausdrücke is [ˈaʊ̯sˌdʁʏkə] while ausdrückte is [ˈaʊ̯sˌdʁʏktə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60839, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Ausdrücke is recorded at frequency rank #17,815, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌdʁʏkə]. ausdrückte is at rank #43,024, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌdʁʏktə].

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 60839, this pair ranks #772,018 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Ausdrücke vs ausdrückte

Shared letters: acdekrsuü. Private to "Ausdrücke": -. Private to "ausdrückte": t.

"Ausdrücke" · 9 letters · shape VVCCCVCCV  ·  "ausdrückte" · 10 letters · shape VVCCCVCCCV

Frequency comparison

Ausdrücke#17,815
ausdrückte#43,024

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Ausdrücke" and "ausdrückte" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Ausdrücke" is a noun and "ausdrückte" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Ausdrücke" or "ausdrückte"?
"Ausdrücke" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,815 in our German list, against #43,024 for "ausdrückte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Ausdrücke vs ausdrückte

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Ausdrücke”; for a verb, it's “ausdrückte”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Ausdrücke” 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