mitfahrenvsMitfahrerWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: mitfahren is a verb, Mitfahrer is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“mitfahren” is a verb and “Mitfahrer” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#21,001
“mitfahren” frequency rank
#34,811
“Mitfahrer” frequency rank
55812
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mitfahren Mitfahrer
Definition mit einer anderen Person/Personen zusammen im gleichen Fahrzeug fahren Person, die sich bei einer Fahrt mitnehmen lässt, eventuell gegen Fahrtkostenbeteiligung

Where the spellings diverge

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

9 ch
mitfahren
9 ch
Mitfahrer

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: mitfahren is [ˈmɪtˌfaːʁən] while Mitfahrer is [ˈmɪtˌfaːʁɐ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - n in “mitfahren” becomes r in “Mitfahrer”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 55812, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mitfahren is recorded at frequency rank #21,001, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈmɪtˌfaːʁən]. Mitfahrer is at rank #34,811, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈmɪtˌfaːʁɐ].

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 55812, this pair ranks #964,743 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of mitfahren vs Mitfahrer

Shared letters: aefhimrt. Private to "mitfahren": n. Private to "Mitfahrer": -.

"mitfahren" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC  ·  "Mitfahrer" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • mitfahrenimtfahren · miftahren · mitafhren · mitfahern · mitfahhren · mitfahrenn · mitfahrne · mitfahrren
  • Mitfahrerimtfahrer · miftahrer · mitafhrer · mitfaherr · mitfahhrer · mitfahrerr · mitfahrre · mitfahrrer

Frequency comparison

mitfahren#21,001
Mitfahrer#34,811

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mitfahren" and "Mitfahrer" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "mitfahren" is a verb and "Mitfahrer" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "mitfahren" or "Mitfahrer"?
"mitfahren" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,001 in our German list, against #34,811 for "Mitfahrer". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering mitfahren vs Mitfahrer

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “mitfahren”; for a noun, it's “Mitfahrer”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “mitfahren” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list