Which to use
“Ruf” and “Ruin” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,317
- “Ruf” frequency rank
- #21,044
- “Ruin” frequency rank
- 23361
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Ruf | Ruin |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ein Laut, der an jemanden adressiert ist | Zustand des vollständigen finanziellen, gesundheitlichen oder moralischen Zusammenbruchs |
Where the eye mixes Ruf and Ruin
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses Ruf with Ruin
A purely visual mix-up. Ruf ([ʁuːf]) and Ruin ([ʁuˈiːn]) 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 23361, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Ruf is recorded at frequency rank #2,317, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʁuːf]. Ruin is at rank #21,044, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʁuˈiːn].
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 23361, this pair ranks #1,862,282 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Ruf vs Ruin
Shared letters: ru. Private to "Ruf": f. Private to "Ruin": in.
"Ruf" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "Ruin" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Ruin ← riun · rruin · ruinn · runi
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Ruf" and "Ruin" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "Ruf" or "Ruin" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "Ruf" and "Ruin" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Ruf" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Ruin" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,862,282 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Ruf" and "Ruin" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "RUB vs Ruin". 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 #1,862,282 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.