Which to use
“Anstrengung” and “Anstrengungen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #13,763
- “Anstrengung” frequency rank
- #10,039
- “Anstrengungen” frequency rank
- 23802
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Anstrengung | Anstrengungen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ein (großer) Kraftaufwand, Mühe, Fleiß, Ausdauer, um etwas zu erreichen oder zu überwinden | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Anstrengung |
Where the eye mixes Anstrengung and Anstrengungen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence. Anstrengung runs 11 letters (VCCCCVCCVCC) against Anstrengungen's 13 (VCCCCVCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses Anstrengung with Anstrengungen
A purely visual mix-up. Anstrengung ([ˈanˌʃtʁɛŋʊŋ]) and Anstrengungen ([ˈanʃtʁɛŋʊŋən]) 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 extra letter(s) - “Anstrengung” sits inside “Anstrengungen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23802, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Anstrengung is recorded at frequency rank #13,763, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈanˌʃtʁɛŋʊŋ]. Anstrengungen is at rank #10,039, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈanʃtʁɛŋʊŋən].
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 23802, this pair ranks #1,856,424 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Anstrengung vs Anstrengungen
Shared letters: aegnrstu. Private to "Anstrengung": -. Private to "Anstrengungen": -.
"Anstrengung" · 11 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVCC · "Anstrengungen" · 13 letters · shape VCCCCVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Anstrengung ← annstrengung · ansrtengung · ansstrengung · ansterngung · anstregnung · anstrenggung · anstrengnug · anstrengugn
- Anstrengungen ← annstrengungen · ansrtengungen · ansstrengungen · ansterngungen · anstregnungen · anstrenggungen · anstrengnugen · anstrengugnen
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Anstrengung" for "Anstrengungen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "Anstrengung" or "Anstrengungen" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "Anstrengung" and "Anstrengungen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Anstrengung" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Anstrengungen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,856,424 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Anstrengung" and "Anstrengungen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "anstrengen vs Anstrengung". 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 #1,856,424 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.