dunvsDurWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: dun is a adjective, Dur is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“dun” is an adjective and “Dur” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#37,461
“dun” frequency rank
#10,455
“Dur” frequency rank
47916
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature dun Dur
Definition im Zustand nach Genuss von zu viel Alkohol Tongeschlecht einer Klangverbindung, deren Charakteristikum eine große Terz im Verhältnis zum Grundton ist

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set dun and Dur apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
dun
3 ch
Dur

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

dun and Dur form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by a single letter - n in “dun” becomes r in “Dur” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47916, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

dun is recorded at frequency rank #37,461, classified as anadj, pronounced [duːn]. Dur is at rank #10,455, tagged as anoun, pronounced [duːɐ̯].

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 47916, this pair ranks #1,267,400 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Frequency comparison

dun#37,461
Dur#10,455

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "dun" and "Dur" be used interchangeably?
No, "dun" and "Dur" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering dun vs Dur

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “dun”; for a noun, it's “Dur”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “dun” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list