aka vs auf, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“aka” is a verb and “auf” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#15,975
“aka” frequency rank: #42,318
“auf” frequency rank: 58293
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	aka	auf
Definition	dirigir, guiar (um veículo):	aberto

Where the spellings diverge

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

3 ch

aka

3 ch

auf

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: aka is /ˈaː.g̊a/, /ouːg̊/ while auf is /aʊ̯f/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 58293, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

aka is recorded at frequency rank #15,975, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈaː.g̊a/, /ouːg̊/. 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 58293, this pair ranks #8,827 of 75,631 scored Portuguese confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of aka vs auf

Shared letters: a. Private to "aka": k. Private to "auf": fu.

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

Frequency comparison

aka#15,975

auf#42,318

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "aka" and "auf" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "aka" is a verb and "auf" an adverb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "aka" or "auf"?

"aka" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,975 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 aka vs auf

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “aka”; for an adverb, it's “auf”.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “aka” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable