Which to use
“erstarken” and “erstaunen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #39,326
- “erstarken” frequency rank
- #21,240
- “erstaunen” frequency rank
- 60566
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | erstarken | erstaunen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | an Kraft, Umfang, Bedeutung zunehmen (stärker werden) | ins Staunen kommen |
Where the eye mixes erstarken and erstaunen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. erstarken (VCCCVCCVC) and erstaunen (VCCCVVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between erstarken and erstaunen
A purely visual mix-up. erstarken ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʁkn̩]) and erstaunen ([ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nən]) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60566, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
erstarken is recorded at frequency rank #39,326, classified as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʁkn̩]. erstaunen is at rank #21,240, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɛɐ̯ˈʃtaʊ̯nən].
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 60566, this pair ranks #782,212 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of erstarken vs erstaunen
Shared letters: aenrst. Private to "erstarken": k. Private to "erstaunen": u.
"erstarken" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC · "erstaunen" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "erstarken" and "erstaunen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "erstarken" or "erstaunen"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "erstarken" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "erstaunen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #782,212 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "erstarken" and "erstaunen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "erstarken vs erstarren". 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 #782,212 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.