Which to use
“nur” is a particle and “nut” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #40
- “nur” frequency rank
- #36,531
- “nut” frequency rank
- 36571
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | nur | nut |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | generell: unterstreicht die Betonung oder Einschränkung der Satzteilaussage | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs nuten |
Where the eye mixes nur and nut
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between nur and nut
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: nur is [nuːɐ̯] while nut is [nuːt]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - r in “nur” becomes t in “nut”, and the parts of speech differ too (particle vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36571, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
nur is recorded at frequency rank #40, classified as aparticle, pronounced [nuːɐ̯]. nut is at rank #36,531, tagged as averb, pronounced [nuːt].
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 36571, this pair ranks #1,612,187 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of nur vs nut
Shared letters: nu. Private to "nur": r. Private to "nut": t.
"nur" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "nut" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "nur" and "nut" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "nur" or "nut" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "nur" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "nut" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,612,187 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "nur" and "nut" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nox vs nut". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,612,187 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.