runsvsRusWhich spelling fits?

Quick tell: runs is a verb, Rus is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“runs” is a verb and “Rus” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#40,182
“runs” frequency rank
#30,267
“Rus” frequency rank
70449
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature runs Rus
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs run Gebiet der ostslawischen Staats- und Gemeinwesen vom 9. bis zum 17. Jahrhundert

Where the eye mixes runs and Rus

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.

4 ch
runs
3 ch
Rus

Visual trap between runs and Rus

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: runs is [ɹʌnz] while Rus is [ʁʊs]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 70449, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

runs is recorded at frequency rank #40,182, classified as averb, pronounced [ɹʌnz]. Rus is at rank #30,267, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʁʊs].

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 70449, this pair ranks #446,029 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of runs vs Rus

Shared letters: rsu. Private to "runs": n. Private to "Rus": -.

"runs" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "Rus" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • runsrnus · rruns · runns · runss · rusn · urns

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "runs" for "Rus" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "runs" is a verb and "Rus" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
In ordinary German text, does "runs" or "Rus" show up more?
"Rus" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #30,267 in our German list, against #40,182 for "runs". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "runs" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Rus" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #446,029 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "runs" and "Rus" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "RUB vs runs". 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 #446,029 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