Which to use
“anstellen” is a verb and “Anstellung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,718
- “anstellen” frequency rank
- #12,448
- “Anstellung” frequency rank
- 20166
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | anstellen | Anstellung |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | einen Gegenstand an einen anderen anlehnen | Vereinbarung, dass jemand eine bestimmte Arbeitsstelle einnehmen soll |
Where the eye mixes anstellen and Anstellung
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. anstellen runs 9 letters (VCCCVCCVC) against Anstellung's 10 (VCCCVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses anstellen with Anstellung
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: anstellen is [ˈanˌʃtɛlən] while Anstellung is [ˈanˌʃtɛlʊŋ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20166, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
anstellen is recorded at frequency rank #7,718, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈanˌʃtɛlən]. Anstellung is at rank #12,448, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈanˌʃtɛlʊŋ].
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 20166, this pair ranks #1,900,558 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of anstellen vs Anstellung
Shared letters: aelnst. Private to "anstellen": -. Private to "Anstellung": gu.
"anstellen" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC · "Anstellung" · 10 letters · shape VCCCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- anstellen ← annstellen · ansetllen · ansstellen · ansteleln · anstelen · anstellenn · anstellne · anstlelen
- Anstellung ← annstellung · ansetllung · ansstellung · anstellnug · anstellugn · anstellungg · anstellunng · anstelulng
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "anstellen" for "Anstellung" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "anstellen" or "Anstellung" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "anstellen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Anstellung" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,900,558 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "anstellen" and "Anstellung" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "anstellen vs Antillen". 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 #1,900,558 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.