Which to use
“auslachen” and “auslaufen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #32,427
- “auslachen” frequency rank
- #17,226
- “auslaufen” frequency rank
- 49653
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | auslachen | auslaufen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sich über jemanden lustig machen, jemanden verspotten, indem man über ihn lacht | als Flüssigkeit aus einer Öffnung austreten |
Where the eye mixes auslachen and auslaufen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. auslachen (VVCCVCCVC) and auslaufen (VVCCVVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses auslachen with auslaufen
A purely visual mix-up. auslachen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌlaxn̩]) and auslaufen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌlaʊ̯fn̩]) 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 49653, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
auslachen is recorded at frequency rank #32,427, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌlaxn̩]. auslaufen is at rank #17,226, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌlaʊ̯fn̩].
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 49653, this pair ranks #1,203,319 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of auslachen vs auslaufen
Shared letters: aelnsu. Private to "auslachen": ch. Private to "auslaufen": f.
"auslachen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVCCVC · "auslaufen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "auslachen" and "auslaufen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "auslachen" vs "auslaufen" - which ranks higher?
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 "auslachen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "auslaufen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,203,319 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "auslachen" and "auslaufen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "auslachen vs Auslagen". 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 #1,203,319 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.