genauvsGerätConfusable pair

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

Which to use

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

#211
“genau” frequency rank
#2,109
“Gerät” frequency rank
2320
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature genau Gerät
Definition gründlich und sorgfältig, was das Einhalten von selbstgesetzten oder fremden Regeln betrifft ein Werkzeug oder Hilfsmittel; ein (ursprünglich einfach aufgebauter) beweglicher Gegenstand, mit dem etwas bewirkt werden kann

Where the eye mixes genau and Gerät

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

5 ch
genau
5 ch
Gerät

Visual trap between genau and Gerät

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: genau is [ɡəˈnaʊ̯] while Gerät is [ɡəˈʁɛːt]. 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 (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2320, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

genau is recorded at frequency rank #211, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈnaʊ̯]. Gerät is at rank #2,109, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɡəˈʁɛːt].

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 2320, this pair ranks #2,002,620 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of genau vs Gerät

Shared letters: eg. Private to "genau": anu. Private to "Gerät": rtä.

"genau" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV  ·  "Gerät" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • genauegnau · geanu · gennau · ggenau · gneau

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "genau" for "Gerät" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "genau" is an adjective and "Gerät" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "genau" vs "Gerät" - which ranks higher?
"genau" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #211 in our German list, against #2,109 for "Gerät". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "genau" and "Gerät" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "genau" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Gerät" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #2,002,620 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "genau" and "Gerät" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gerafft vs Gerät". 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 #2,002,620 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list