Which to use
“Teufel” and “Trubel” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,341
- “Teufel” frequency rank
- #28,428
- “Trubel” frequency rank
- 31769
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Teufel | Trubel |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | böses Geisterwesen | geschäftiges Treiben, aufgeregtes Durcheinander |
Where the eye mixes Teufel and Trubel
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. Teufel (CVVCVC) and Trubel (CCVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: Teufel vs Trubel
A purely visual mix-up. Teufel ([ˈtɔɪ̯fl̩]) and Trubel ([ˈtʁuːbl̩]) 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 31769, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Teufel is recorded at frequency rank #3,341, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈtɔɪ̯fl̩]. Trubel is at rank #28,428, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈtʁuːbl̩].
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 31769, this pair ranks #1,721,445 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Teufel vs Trubel
Shared letters: eltu. Private to "Teufel": f. Private to "Trubel": br.
"Teufel" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC · "Trubel" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Teufel" for "Trubel" ever safe?
Frequency check: "Teufel" vs "Trubel" - 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 "Teufel" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Trubel" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,721,445 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Teufel" and "Trubel" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Trubel vs trügen". 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 #1,721,445 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.