UrlaubervsUrlaubsWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

“Urlauber” and “Urlaubs” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#12,815
“Urlauber” frequency rank
#22,548
“Urlaubs” frequency rank
35363
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Urlauber Urlaubs
Definition jemand, der Urlaub macht; der sich im Urlaub befindet Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Urlaub

Where the eye mixes Urlauber and Urlaubs

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. Urlauber runs 8 letters (VCCVVCVC) against Urlaubs's 7 (VCCVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
Urlauber
7 ch
Urlaubs

Visual trap between Urlauber and Urlaubs

A purely visual mix-up. Urlauber ([ˈuːɐ̯ˌlaʊ̯bɐ]) and Urlaubs ([ˈuːɐ̯ˌlaʊ̯ps]) 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 35363, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Urlauber is recorded at frequency rank #12,815, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈuːɐ̯ˌlaʊ̯bɐ]. Urlaubs is at rank #22,548, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈuːɐ̯ˌlaʊ̯ps].

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 35363, this pair ranks #1,641,786 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Urlauber vs Urlaubs

Shared letters: ablru. Private to "Urlauber": e. Private to "Urlaubs": s.

"Urlauber" · 8 letters · shape VCCVVCVC  ·  "Urlaubs" · 7 letters · shape VCCVVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Urlauber ← rulauber · ulrauber · uraluber · urlabuer · urlaubber · urlauberr · urlaubre · urlauebr
  • Urlaubs ← rulaubs · ulraubs · uralubs · urlabus · urlaubbs · urlaubss · urlausb · urllaubs

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Urlauber" and "Urlaubs" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈuːɐ̯ˌlaʊ̯bɐ] versus [ˈuːɐ̯ˌlaʊ̯ps]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Urlauber" vs "Urlaubs" - which ranks higher?
"Urlauber" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,815 in our German list, against #22,548 for "Urlaubs". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "Urlauber" and "Urlaubs" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Urlauber" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Urlaubs" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,641,786 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Urlauber" and "Urlaubs" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Urlaube vs Urlaubs". 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 #1,641,786 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list