Which to use
“duften” is a verb and “düster” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #45,865
- “duften” frequency rank
- #14,783
- “düster” frequency rank
- 60648
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | duften | düster |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | angenehmen Geruch abgeben, verströmen, verbreiten | schlecht beleuchtet, von wenig Licht erhellt |
Where the eye mixes duften and düster
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses duften with düster
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: duften is [ˈdʊftn̩] while düster is [ˈdyːstɐ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60648, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
duften is recorded at frequency rank #45,865, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈdʊftn̩]. 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 60648, this pair ranks #779,117 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of duften vs düster
Shared letters: det. Private to "duften": fnu. Private to "düster": rsü.
"duften" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "düster" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- duften ← dduften · dfuten · dufetn · dufften · duftenn · duftne · duftten · dutfen
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "duften" for "düster" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "duften" or "düster" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "duften" 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 #779,117 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "duften" and "düster" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "duften vs Dukaten". 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 #779,117 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.