Which to use
“ausfahren” and “aussahen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #40,393
- “ausfahren” frequency rank
- #31,944
- “aussahen” frequency rank
- 72337
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ausfahren | aussahen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (jemanden) mit einem Fahrzeug, Kinderwagen, Rollstuhl oder Ähnlichem auf einen Ausflug, eine Ausfahrt mitnehmen | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs aussehen |
Where the eye mixes ausfahren and aussahen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. ausfahren runs 9 letters (VVCCVCCVC) against aussahen's 8 (VVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses ausfahren with aussahen
A purely visual mix-up. ausfahren ([ˈaʊ̯sˌfaːʁən]) and aussahen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌzaːən]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 72337, 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]. aussahen is at rank #31,944, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌzaːən].
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 72337, this pair ranks #391,156 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of ausfahren vs aussahen
Shared letters: aehnsu. Private to "ausfahren": fr. Private to "aussahen": -.
"ausfahren" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC · "aussahen" · 8 letters · shape VVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "ausfahren" and "aussahen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "ausfahren" or "aussahen" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "ausfahren" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "aussahen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #391,156 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ausfahren" and "aussahen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ausfahren vs Ausfahrten". 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 #391,156 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.