Which to use
“rotten” and “rüsten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #34,340
- “rotten” frequency rank
- #29,319
- “rüsten” frequency rank
- 63659
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | rotten | rüsten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | faulen, verfallen | sich auf eine bewaffnete Auseinandersetzung vorbereiten |
Where the eye mixes rotten and rüsten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses rotten with rüsten
A purely visual mix-up. rotten ([ˈʁɔtn̩]) and rüsten ([ˈʁʏstn̩]) 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 63659, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
rotten is recorded at frequency rank #34,340, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʁɔtn̩]. rüsten is at rank #29,319, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʁʏstn̩].
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 63659, this pair ranks #668,927 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of rotten vs rüsten
Shared letters: enrt. Private to "rotten": o. Private to "rüsten": sü.
"rotten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "rüsten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- rotten ← rotetn · rottenn · rottne · rrotten · rtoten
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "rotten" for "rüsten" ever safe?
Frequency check: "rotten" vs "rüsten" - which ranks higher?
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 "rotten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "rüsten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #668,927 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "rotten" and "rüsten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "rollten vs rotten". 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 #668,927 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.