OstvsOutsConfusable pair

Which to use

“Ost” and “Outs” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#2,356
“Ost” frequency rank
#45,496
“Outs” frequency rank
47852
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Ost Outs
Definition Kurzform für die Haupthimmelsrichtung Osten in der Navigation, Seefahrt Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Out

Where the eye mixes Ost and Outs

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

3 ch
Ost
4 ch
Outs

Look-alike desk: Ost vs Outs

A purely visual mix-up. Ost ([ɔst]) and Outs ([aʊ̯t͡s]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47852, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Ost is recorded at frequency rank #2,356, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɔst]. Outs is at rank #45,496, tagged as anoun, pronounced [aʊ̯t͡s].

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 47852, this pair ranks #1,269,651 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Ost vs Outs

Shared letters: ost. Private to "Ost": -. Private to "Outs": u.

"Ost" · 3 letters · shape VCC  ·  "Outs" · 4 letters · shape VVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Outsotus · oust · outss · outts · uots

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Ost" and "Outs" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ɔst] versus [aʊ̯t͡s]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Ost" vs "Outs" - which ranks higher?
"Ost" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,356 in our German list, against #45,496 for "Outs". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

After this comparison

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "Ost" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Outs" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,269,651 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Ost" and "Outs" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ones vs Outs". 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 #1,269,651 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