Which to use
“tun” and “turn” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #245
- “tun” frequency rank
- #14,188
- “turn” frequency rank
- 14433
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tun | turn |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | eine Handlung ausführen | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs turnen |
Where the eye mixes tun and turn
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between tun and turn
A purely visual mix-up. tun ([tuːn]) and turn ([tʊʁn]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14433, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tun is recorded at frequency rank #245, classified as averb, pronounced [tuːn]. turn is at rank #14,188, tagged as averb, pronounced [tʊʁn].
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 14433, this pair ranks #1,951,256 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of tun vs turn
Shared letters: ntu. Private to "tun": -. Private to "turn": r.
"tun" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "turn" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- turn ← trun · tturn · tunr · turnn · turrn · utrn
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "tun" and "turn" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "tun" vs "turn" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "tun" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "turn" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,951,256 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tun" and "turn" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Türkin vs turn". 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 #1,951,256 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.