FahrspurvsFahrspurenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#45,915
“Fahrspur” frequency rank
#48,872
“Fahrspuren” frequency rank
94787
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Fahrspur Fahrspuren
Definition markierter Streifen auf einer Straße, der für die Fahrt in eine festgelegte Richtung vorgesehen ist Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Fahrspur

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Fahrspur and Fahrspuren apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
Fahrspur
10 ch
Fahrspuren

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Fahrspur ([ˈfaːɐ̯ˌʃpuːɐ̯]) and Fahrspuren ([ˈfaːɐ̯ˌʃpuːʁən]) 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 extra letter(s) - “Fahrspur” sits inside “Fahrspuren”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 94787, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Fahrspur is recorded at frequency rank #45,915, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈfaːɐ̯ˌʃpuːɐ̯]. Fahrspuren is at rank #48,872, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfaːɐ̯ˌʃpuːʁən].

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 94787, this pair ranks #14,864 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Fahrspur vs Fahrspuren

Shared letters: afhprsu. Private to "Fahrspur": -. Private to "Fahrspuren": en.

"Fahrspur" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCCVC  ·  "Fahrspuren" · 10 letters · shape CVCCCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Fahrspurafhrspur · fahhrspur · fahrpsur · fahrrspur · fahrsppur · fahrspru · fahrspurr · fahrsspur
  • Fahrspurenafhrspuren · fahhrspuren · fahrpsuren · fahrrspuren · fahrsppuren · fahrspruen · fahrspuern · fahrspurenn

Frequency comparison

Fahrspur#45,915
Fahrspuren#48,872

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Fahrspur" and "Fahrspuren" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈfaːɐ̯ˌʃpuːɐ̯] versus [ˈfaːɐ̯ˌʃpuːʁən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Fahrspur" or "Fahrspuren"?
"Fahrspur" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #45,915 in our German list, against #48,872 for "Fahrspuren". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Fahrspur vs Fahrspuren

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Fahrspur” 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