Which to use
“anstellen” and “anzustellen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #7,718
- “anstellen” frequency rank
- #29,469
- “anzustellen” frequency rank
- 37187
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | anstellen | anzustellen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | einen Gegenstand an einen anderen anlehnen | erweiterter Infinitiv Aktiv des Verbs anstellen |
Where the eye mixes anstellen and anzustellen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. anstellen runs 9 letters (VCCCVCCVC) against anzustellen's 11 (VCCVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: anstellen vs anzustellen
A purely visual mix-up. anstellen ([ˈanˌʃtɛlən]) and anzustellen ([ˈant͡suˌʃtɛlən]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37187, 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]. anzustellen is at rank #29,469, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈant͡suˌʃtɛlən].
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 37187, this pair ranks #1,596,634 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of anstellen vs anzustellen
Shared letters: aelnst. Private to "anstellen": -. Private to "anzustellen": uz.
"anstellen" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC · "anzustellen" · 11 letters · shape VCCVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- anstellen ← annstellen · ansetllen · ansstellen · ansteleln · anstelen · anstellenn · anstellne · anstlelen
- anzustellen ← annzustellen · anuzstellen · anzsutellen · anzusetllen · anzusstellen · anzusteleln · anzustelen · anzustellenn
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "anstellen" and "anzustellen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "anstellen" vs "anzustellen" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "anstellen" and "anzustellen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "anstellen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "anzustellen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,596,634 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "anstellen" and "anzustellen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "anzustellen vs auszustellen". 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 #1,596,634 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.