agovsaufWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“ago” and “auf” are a confusable Portuguese pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#9,434
“ago” frequency rank
#42,318
“auf” frequency rank
51752
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ago auf
Definition há, atrás – adj aberto

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set ago and auf apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
ago
3 ch
auf

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. ago (/əˈɡəʊ/) and auf (/aʊ̯f/) 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 51752, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ago is recorded at frequency rank #9,434, classified as anadv, pronounced /əˈɡəʊ/. auf is at rank #42,318, tagged as anadv, pronounced /aʊ̯f/.

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 51752, this pair ranks #13,346 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of ago vs auf

Shared letters: a. Private to "ago": go. Private to "auf": fu.

"ago" · 3 letters · shape VCV  ·  "auf" · 3 letters · shape VVC

Frequency comparison

ago#9,434
auf#42,318

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ago" and "auf" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/əˈɡəʊ/ versus /aʊ̯f/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "ago" or "auf"?
"ago" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,434 in our Portuguese list, against #42,318 for "auf". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering ago vs auf

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “ago” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list