Which to use
“taugen” and “trügen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,792
- “taugen” frequency rank
- #48,553
- “trügen” frequency rank
- 70345
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | taugen | trügen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | zu etwas nützlich/brauchbar sein | etwas Unzutreffendes vortäuschen |
Where the eye mixes taugen and trügen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. taugen (CVVCVC) and trügen (CCVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between taugen and trügen
A purely visual mix-up. taugen ([ˈtaʊ̯ɡn̩]) and trügen ([ˈtʁyːɡn̩]) 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 70345, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
taugen is recorded at frequency rank #21,792, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈtaʊ̯ɡn̩]. trügen is at rank #48,553, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈtʁyːɡn̩].
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 70345, this pair ranks #449,132 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of taugen vs trügen
Shared letters: egnt. Private to "taugen": au. Private to "trügen": rü.
"taugen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC · "trügen" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- taugen ← atugen · taguen · tauegn · taugenn · tauggen · taugne · ttaugen · tuagen
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "taugen" for "trügen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "taugen" or "trügen" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "taugen" and "trügen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "taugen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "trügen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #449,132 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "taugen" and "trügen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "trügen vs trügt". 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 #449,132 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.