Which to use
“gebraucht” is an adjective and “gebraut” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,107
- “gebraucht” frequency rank
- #35,785
- “gebraut” frequency rank
- 37892
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gebraucht | gebraut |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | bereits verwendet, nicht neu | Partizip Perfekt des Verbs brauen |
Where the eye mixes gebraucht and gebraut
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses gebraucht with gebraut
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: gebraucht is [ɡəˈbʁaʊ̯xt] while gebraut is [ɡəˈbʁaʊ̯t]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37892, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gebraucht is recorded at frequency rank #2,107, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈbʁaʊ̯xt]. gebraut is at rank #35,785, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈbʁaʊ̯t].
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 37892, this pair ranks #1,578,326 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of gebraucht vs gebraut
Shared letters: abegrtu. Private to "gebraucht": ch. Private to "gebraut": -.
"gebraucht" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCCC · "gebraut" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "gebraucht" for "gebraut" ever safe?
Which is more common, "gebraucht" or "gebraut"?
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 "gebraucht" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gebraut" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,578,326 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gebraucht" and "gebraut" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gebraut vs graut". 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 #1,578,326 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.