Which to use
“bestärken” and “bestaunen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #37,403
- “bestärken” frequency rank
- #23,049
- “bestaunen” frequency rank
- 60452
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bestärken | bestaunen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemanden in einer Haltung, einem Vorhaben stützen und ermutigen | etwas mit Anerkennung/Verwunderung betrachten, anschauen |
Where the eye mixes bestärken and bestaunen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. bestärken (CVCCVCCVC) and bestaunen (CVCCVVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses bestärken with bestaunen
A purely visual mix-up. bestärken ([bəˈʃtɛʁkn̩]) and bestaunen ([bəˈʃtaʊ̯nən]) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60452, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bestärken is recorded at frequency rank #37,403, classified as averb, pronounced [bəˈʃtɛʁkn̩]. bestaunen is at rank #23,049, tagged as averb, pronounced [bəˈʃtaʊ̯nən].
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 60452, this pair ranks #786,443 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of bestärken vs bestaunen
Shared letters: benst. Private to "bestärken": krä. Private to "bestaunen": au.
"bestärken" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "bestaunen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- bestaunen ← bbestaunen · besatunen · besstaunen · bestanuen · bestauenn · bestaunenn · bestaunne · bestaunnen
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "bestärken" for "bestaunen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "bestärken" vs "bestaunen" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "bestärken" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "bestaunen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #786,443 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "bestärken" and "bestaunen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bestaunen vs betäuben". 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 #786,443 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.