auslösenvsAuslöserWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#7,868
“auslösen” frequency rank
#9,682
“Auslöser” frequency rank
17550
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature auslösen Auslöser
Definition etwas in Gang/in Bewegung setzen Zündvorrichtung für einen Sprengsatz

Where the eye mixes auslösen and Auslöser

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. auslösen and Auslöser follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VVCCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

8 ch
auslösen
8 ch
Auslöser

Visual trap between auslösen and Auslöser

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: auslösen is [ˈaʊ̯sˌløːzn̩] while Auslöser is [ˈaʊ̯sˌløːzɐ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - n in “auslösen” becomes r in “Auslöser”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17550, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

auslösen is recorded at frequency rank #7,868, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌløːzn̩]. Auslöser is at rank #9,682, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌløːzɐ].

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 17550, this pair ranks #1,926,390 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of auslösen vs Auslöser

Shared letters: aelsuö. Private to "auslösen": n. Private to "Auslöser": r.

"auslösen" · 8 letters · shape VVCCVCVC  ·  "Auslöser" · 8 letters · shape VVCCVCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "auslösen" and "Auslöser" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "auslösen" is a verb and "Auslöser" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "auslösen" or "Auslöser"?
"auslösen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,868 in our German list, against #9,682 for "Auslöser". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "auslösen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Auslöser" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,926,390 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "auslösen" and "Auslöser" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Auslagen vs auslösen". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,926,390 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list