Which to use
“auslegen” and “ausleihen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #22,261
- “auslegen” frequency rank
- #15,561
- “ausleihen” frequency rank
- 37822
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | auslegen | ausleihen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | eine Fläche mehr oder weniger lückenlos mit flächigen Teilen bedecken | jemand(em) etwas borgen |
Where the eye mixes auslegen and ausleihen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. auslegen runs 8 letters (VVCCVCVC) against ausleihen's 9 (VVCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between auslegen and ausleihen
A purely visual mix-up. auslegen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌleːɡn̩]) and ausleihen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌlaɪ̯ən]) 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 37822, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
auslegen is recorded at frequency rank #22,261, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌleːɡn̩]. ausleihen is at rank #15,561, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌlaɪ̯ən].
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 37822, this pair ranks #1,580,181 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of auslegen vs ausleihen
Shared letters: aelnsu. Private to "auslegen": g. Private to "ausleihen": hi.
"auslegen" · 8 letters · shape VVCCVCVC · "ausleihen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "auslegen" for "ausleihen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "auslegen" vs "ausleihen" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "auslegen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ausleihen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,580,181 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "auslegen" and "ausleihen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Auslagen vs auslegen". 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 #1,580,181 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.