Which to use
“taut” and “tu” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #49,293
- “taut” frequency rank
- #2,620
- “tu” frequency rank
- 51913
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | taut | tu |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs tauen | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs tun |
Where the eye mixes taut and tu
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses taut with tu
A purely visual mix-up. taut ([taʊ̯t]) and tu ([tuː]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51913, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
taut is recorded at frequency rank #49,293, classified as averb, pronounced [taʊ̯t]. tu is at rank #2,620, tagged as averb, pronounced [tuː].
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 51913, this pair ranks #1,117,213 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of taut vs tu
Shared letters: tu. Private to "taut": a. Private to "tu": -.
"taut" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "tu" · 2 letters · shape CV
Known mistypes of this pair
- taut ← atut · tatu · tautt · ttaut · tuat
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "taut" for "tu" ever safe?
Frequency check: "taut" vs "tu" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "taut" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tu" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,117,213 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "taut" and "tu" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Taft vs taut". 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 #1,117,213 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.