Which to use
“anstehen” and “ausstehen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #17,802
- “anstehen” frequency rank
- #25,452
- “ausstehen” frequency rank
- 43254
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | anstehen | ausstehen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sich an das Ende einer Schlange stellen und warten, um an die Reihe zu kommen | erwartet werden, aber noch fehlen |
Where the eye mixes anstehen and ausstehen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. anstehen runs 8 letters (VCCCVCVC) against ausstehen's 9 (VVCCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: anstehen vs ausstehen
A purely visual mix-up. anstehen ([ˈanˌʃteːən]) and ausstehen ([ˈaʊ̯sˌʃteːən]) 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 43254, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
anstehen is recorded at frequency rank #17,802, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌʃteːən]. ausstehen is at rank #25,452, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈaʊ̯sˌʃteːən].
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 43254, this pair ranks #1,423,899 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of anstehen vs ausstehen
Shared letters: aehnst. Private to "anstehen": -. Private to "ausstehen": u.
"anstehen" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCVC · "ausstehen" · 9 letters · shape VVCCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "anstehen" and "ausstehen" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "anstehen" or "ausstehen" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "anstehen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ausstehen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,423,899 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "anstehen" and "ausstehen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "aussehend vs ausstehen". 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 #1,423,899 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.