Which to use
“baue” and “bu” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,670
- “baue” frequency rank
- #15,054
- “bu” frequency rank
- 27724
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | baue | bu |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs bauen | Partizip Perfekt Maskulinum Singular des Verbs boire |
Where the eye mixes baue and bu
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between baue and bu
A purely visual mix-up. baue ([ˈbaʊ̯ə]) and bu ([by]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27724, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
baue is recorded at frequency rank #12,670, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈbaʊ̯ə]. bu is at rank #15,054, tagged as averb, pronounced [by].
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 27724, this pair ranks #1,796,929 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of baue vs bu
Shared letters: bu. Private to "baue": ae. Private to "bu": -.
"baue" · 4 letters · shape CVVV · "bu" · 2 letters · shape CV
Known mistypes of this pair
- baue ← abue · baeu · bbaue · buae
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "baue" for "bu" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "baue" or "bu" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "baue" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "bu" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,796,929 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "baue" and "bu" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bic vs bu". 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 #1,796,929 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.