Which to use
“Kurs” is a noun and “kürzt” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,894
- “Kurs” frequency rank
- #44,034
- “kürzt” frequency rank
- 45928
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Kurs | kürzt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | eine eingeschlagene, vorgeschriebene oder aufgezeichnete Richtung einer Person, eines Fahrzeuges, eines Flugzeugs oder eines Schiffes | 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs kürzen |
Where the eye mixes Kurs and kürzt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. Kurs runs 4 letters (CVCC) against kürzt's 5 (CVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses Kurs with kürzt
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Kurs is [kʊʁs] while kürzt is [kʏʁt͡st]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45928, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Kurs is recorded at frequency rank #1,894, classified as anoun, pronounced [kʊʁs]. kürzt is at rank #44,034, tagged as averb, pronounced [kʏʁt͡st].
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 45928, this pair ranks #1,336,379 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Kurs vs kürzt
Shared letters: kr. Private to "Kurs": su. Private to "kürzt": tzü.
"Kurs" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "kürzt" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Kurs ← kkurs · krus · kurrs · kurss · kusr · ukrs
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Kurs" and "kürzt" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "Kurs" or "kürzt"?
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 "Kurs" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "kürzt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,336,379 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Kurs" and "kürzt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Kurie vs kürzt". 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 #1,336,379 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.