Which to use
“träge” is an adjective and “trau” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #22,926
- “träge” frequency rank
- #16,849
- “trau” frequency rank
- 39775
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | träge | trau |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ohne inneren Antrieb | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs trauen |
Where the eye mixes träge and trau
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between träge and trau
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: träge is [ˈtʁɛːɡə] while trau is [tʁaʊ̯]. 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 (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39775, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
träge is recorded at frequency rank #22,926, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈtʁɛːɡə]. trau is at rank #16,849, tagged as averb, pronounced [tʁaʊ̯].
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 39775, this pair ranks #1,527,261 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of träge vs trau
Shared letters: rt. Private to "träge": egä. Private to "trau": au.
"träge" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "trau" · 4 letters · shape CCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- trau ← rtau · taru · trrau · trua · ttrau
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "träge" for "trau" ever safe?
Which is more common, "träge" or "trau"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "träge" and "trau" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "träge" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "trau" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,527,261 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "träge" and "trau" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "träge 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 #1,527,261 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.