rau

[ʁaʊ̯]

/[ʁaʊ̯]/ adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“rau” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #13,465) as an adjective. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#13,465
frequency rank, German
42,116
“R” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - nicht glatt, mit unebener, unbearbeiteter Oberfläche, Beschaffenheit

Corpus desk

Index DE-rau · rau · German

rau · rank #13,465 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,465
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 42,116
  • PHOTO-FINISH psychologisch…

Nearest frequency peer: psychologischen (-1 rank slots)

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “rau”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “rau” sits against the nearest ranked German headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of May 6, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

rau vs re
33% similar
rau vs Rb
0% similar
rau vs Rn
0% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for rau
PropertyValue
Headwordrau
LanguageGerman
Part of speechAdjective
IPA[ʁaʊ̯]
Letters3
Frequency rank#13,465
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “rau” sits in German frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). rau lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for rau is neighbouring look-alikes ("re", "Rb", …), not just typos; it is anadjective pronounced [ʁaʊ̯]. Frequency #13,465 among 42,116 “R” headwords. 5 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for rau, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "re", "Rb", "Rn", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No documented word history exists for this headword, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct German form is rau, spelled R-A-U.

Definition

  1. 1
    nicht glatt, mit unebener, unbearbeiteter Oberfläche, Beschaffenheit
  2. 2
    unwirtlich aufgrund der kargen Gegend und/oder des ungenehmen, kalten Klimas
  3. 3
    sich grob, unfreundlich verhaltend; ohne Benehmen
  4. 4
    heiser, kratzig wirkend
  5. 5
    in ungekochtem, unbearbeitetem Zustand; roh

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how rau appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Die rauen Stellen müssen noch geglättet werden.
  2. „Mit repariertem Beifahrersitz, zwei Ersatzreifen und Werkzeug für die aufgrund der teilweise sehr rauen äthiopischen Pisten mit Sicherheit anfallenden Reparaturen machen wir uns auf den Weg.“

Antonyms

ebenfeinglattangenehmlieblichwirtlichfairfreundschaftlichnett

This word in other languages

rough(English)áspero(Español)rugueux(Français)áspero(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 German corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "rau"?
"rau" is spelled R-A-U. The IPA pronunciation is [ʁaʊ̯].
What does "rau" mean?
As an adjective, "rau" means: nicht glatt, mit unebener, unbearbeiteter Oberfläche, Beschaffenheit
What words are commonly confused with "rau"?
"rau" is commonly confused with "re", "Rb", "Rn". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "rau"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "rau" is [ʁaʊ̯]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "rau" come from?
"rau" is a German word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar German words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "rau", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

PKK#13,459Pia#13,458PCS#13,457NFL#13,450
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list