ausfahrenvsausfallenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#40,393
“ausfahren” frequency rank
#7,011
“ausfallen” frequency rank
47404
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ausfahren ausfallen
Definition (jemanden) mit einem Fahrzeug, Kinderwagen, Rollstuhl oder Ähnlichem auf einen Ausflug, eine Ausfahrt mitnehmen nicht mehr zur Verfügung stehen

Where the spellings diverge

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

9 ch
ausfahren
9 ch
ausfallen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. ausfahren ([ˈaʊ̯sˌfaːʁən]) and ausfallen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌfalən]) 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 47404, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ausfahren is recorded at frequency rank #40,393, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌfaːʁən]. ausfallen is at rank #7,011, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌfalən].

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 47404, this pair ranks #1,285,457 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of ausfahren vs ausfallen

Shared letters: aefnsu. Private to "ausfahren": hr. Private to "ausfallen": l.

"ausfahren" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC  ·  "ausfallen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • ausfahrenasufahren · aufsahren · ausafhren · ausfahern · ausfahhren · ausfahrenn · ausfahrne · ausfahrren
  • ausfallenasufallen · aufsallen · ausafllen · ausfaleln · ausfalen · ausfallenn · ausfallne · ausffallen

Frequency comparison

ausfahren#40,393
ausfallen#7,011

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ausfahren" and "ausfallen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaʊ̯sˌfaːʁən] versus [ˈaʊ̯sˌfalən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "ausfahren" or "ausfallen"?
"ausfallen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,011 in our German list, against #40,393 for "ausfahren". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering ausfahren vs ausfallen

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 “ausfahren” 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