Which to use
“unfähig” and “unruhig” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,957
- “unfähig” frequency rank
- #16,308
- “unruhig” frequency rank
- 27265
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | unfähig | unruhig |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nicht die nötigen Kenntnisse oder Fertigkeiten für die Erfüllung einer Aufgabe habend; einer Tätigkeit nicht gewachsen | nervös, nicht gelassen |
Where the eye mixes unfähig and unruhig
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. unfähig and unruhig follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: unfähig vs unruhig
A purely visual mix-up. unfähig ([ˈʊnˌfɛːɪç]) and unruhig ([ˈʊnʁuːɪç]) 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 27265, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
unfähig is recorded at frequency rank #10,957, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʊnˌfɛːɪç]. unruhig is at rank #16,308, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʊnʁuːɪç].
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 27265, this pair ranks #1,804,583 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of unfähig vs unruhig
Shared letters: ghinu. Private to "unfähig": fä. Private to "unruhig": r.
"unfähig" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC · "unruhig" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- unruhig ← nuruhig · unnruhig · unrhuig · unrruhig · unruhgi · unruhhig · unruhigg · unruihg
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "unfähig" and "unruhig" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "unfähig" vs "unruhig" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "unfähig" and "unruhig" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "unfähig" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "unruhig" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,804,583 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "unfähig" and "unruhig" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "unruhig vs unruhige". 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 #1,804,583 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.