rauchenvsrauchstConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#3,337
“rauchen” frequency rank
#44,163
“rauchst” frequency rank
47500
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature rauchen rauchst
Definition etwas anzünden und den Rauch einatmen 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs rauchen

Where the eye mixes rauchen and rauchst

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. rauchen (CVVCCVC) and rauchst (CVVCCCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

7 ch
rauchen
7 ch
rauchst

Why the eye confuses rauchen with rauchst

A purely visual mix-up. rauchen ([ˈʁaʊ̯xn̩]) and rauchst ([ʁaʊ̯xst]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47500, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

rauchen is recorded at frequency rank #3,337, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʁaʊ̯xn̩]. rauchst is at rank #44,163, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʁaʊ̯xst].

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 47500, this pair ranks #1,282,108 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of rauchen vs rauchst

Shared letters: achru. Private to "rauchen": en. Private to "rauchst": st.

"rauchen" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVC  ·  "rauchst" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • rauchen ← aruchen · racuhen · raucchen · raucehn · rauchenn · rauchhen · rauchne · rauhcen
  • rauchst ← aruchst · racuhst · raucchst · rauchhst · rauchsst · rauchstt · rauchts · rauhcst

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "rauchen" and "rauchst" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʁaʊ̯xn̩] versus [ʁaʊ̯xst]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "rauchen" vs "rauchst" - which ranks higher?
"rauchen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,337 in our German list, against #44,163 for "rauchst". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "rauchen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "rauchst" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,282,108 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "rauchen" and "rauchst" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "rauchst vs riechst". 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 #1,282,108 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