Which to use
“graue” is an adjective and “Grauens” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #8,723
- “graue” frequency rank
- #34,139
- “Grauens” frequency rank
- 42862
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | graue | Grauens |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs grau | Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Grauen |
Where the eye mixes graue and Grauens
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. graue runs 5 letters (CCVVV) against Grauens's 7 (CCVVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses graue with Grauens
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: graue is [ˈɡʁaʊ̯ə] while Grauens is [ˈɡʁaʊ̯əns]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “graue” sits inside “Grauens”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42862, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
graue is recorded at frequency rank #8,723, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈɡʁaʊ̯ə]. Grauens is at rank #34,139, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈɡʁaʊ̯əns].
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 42862, this pair ranks #1,436,163 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of graue vs Grauens
Shared letters: aegru. Private to "graue": -. Private to "Grauens": ns.
"graue" · 5 letters · shape CCVVV · "Grauens" · 7 letters · shape CCVVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "graue" and "Grauens" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "graue" or "Grauens"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "graue" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Grauens" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,436,163 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "graue" and "Grauens" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Grauens vs Graves". 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 #1,436,163 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.