ausübenvsausübteConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#7,283
“ausüben” frequency rank
#37,379
“ausübte” frequency rank
44662
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ausüben ausübte
Definition etwas vollstrecken, vollführen, etwas zur Wirkung bringen 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv der Nebensatzkonjugation des Verbs ausüben

Where the eye mixes ausüben and ausübte

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. ausüben (VVCVCVC) and ausübte (VVCVCCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

7 ch
ausüben
7 ch
ausübte

Look-alike desk: ausüben vs ausübte

A purely visual mix-up. ausüben ([ˈaʊ̯sˌʔyːbn̩]) and ausübte ([ˈaʊ̯sˌʔyːptə]) 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 44662, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ausüben is recorded at frequency rank #7,283, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌʔyːbn̩]. ausübte is at rank #37,379, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌʔyːptə].

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 44662, this pair ranks #1,378,903 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of ausüben vs ausübte

Shared letters: abesuü. Private to "ausüben": n. Private to "ausübte": t.

"ausüben" · 7 letters · shape VVCVCVC  ·  "ausübte" · 7 letters · shape VVCVCCV

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ausüben" and "ausübte" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈaʊ̯sˌʔyːbn̩] versus [ˈaʊ̯sˌʔyːptə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "ausüben" or "ausübte"?
"ausüben" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,283 in our German list, against #37,379 for "ausübte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "ausüben" and "ausübte" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "ausüben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "ausübte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,378,903 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "ausüben" and "ausübte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Auguste vs ausübte". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,378,903 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