Which to use
“dufte” and “düster” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #42,433
- “dufte” frequency rank
- #14,783
- “düster” frequency rank
- 57216
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | dufte | düster |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sehr gut | schlecht beleuchtet, von wenig Licht erhellt |
Where the eye mixes dufte and düster
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: dufte vs düster
A purely visual mix-up. dufte ([ˈdʊftə]) and düster ([ˈdyːstɐ]) 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 57216, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
dufte is recorded at frequency rank #42,433, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈdʊftə]. düster is at rank #14,783, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈdyːstɐ].
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 57216, this pair ranks #909,985 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of dufte vs düster
Shared letters: det. Private to "dufte": fu. Private to "düster": rsü.
"dufte" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "düster" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- dufte ← ddufte · dfute · dufet · duffte · dutfe · udfte
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "dufte" and "düster" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "dufte" or "düster" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "dufte" and "düster" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "dufte" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "düster" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #909,985 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "dufte" and "düster" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "dufte vs Düne". 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 #909,985 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.