Which to use
“anspringen” and “anstrengen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #47,943
- “anspringen” frequency rank
- #19,819
- “anstrengen” frequency rank
- 67762
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | anspringen | anstrengen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | angehen, zu Laufen beginnen | sich mit (großem) Kraftaufwand, (großer) Mühe, Fleiß, Ausdauer und so weiter für eine Leistung oder Leistungssteigerung einsetzen |
Where the eye mixes anspringen and anstrengen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. anspringen and anstrengen follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCCCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: anspringen vs anstrengen
A purely visual mix-up. anspringen ([ˈanˌʃpʁɪŋən]) and anstrengen ([ˈanˌʃtʁɛŋən]) 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 67762, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
anspringen is recorded at frequency rank #47,943, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌʃpʁɪŋən]. anstrengen is at rank #19,819, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌʃtʁɛŋən].
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 67762, this pair ranks #529,553 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of anspringen vs anstrengen
Shared letters: aegnrs. Private to "anspringen": ip. Private to "anstrengen": t.
"anspringen" · 10 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVC · "anstrengen" · 10 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- anspringen ← annspringen · anpsringen · anspirngen · ansppringen · ansprignen · ansprinegn · anspringenn · anspringgen
- anstrengen ← annstrengen · ansrtengen · ansstrengen · ansterngen · anstregnen · anstrenegn · anstrengenn · anstrenggen
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "anspringen" for "anstrengen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "anspringen" or "anstrengen" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "anspringen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "anstrengen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #529,553 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "anspringen" and "anstrengen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "anspringen vs aufspringen". 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 #529,553 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.