säuftvsstuftWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“säuft” and “stuft” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#44,266
“säuft” frequency rank
#37,231
“stuft” frequency rank
81497
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature säuft stuft
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs saufen 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs stufen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set säuft and stuft apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
säuft
5 ch
stuft

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. säuft ([ˈzɔɪ̯ft]) and stuft ([ʃtuːft]) 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 a single letter - ä in “säuft” becomes t in “stuft”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 81497, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

säuft is recorded at frequency rank #44,266, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈzɔɪ̯ft]. stuft is at rank #37,231, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃtuːft].

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 81497, this pair ranks #174,682 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of säuft vs stuft

Shared letters: fstu. Private to "säuft": ä. Private to "stuft": -.

"säuft" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC  ·  "stuft" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • stuftsstuft · stfut · sttuft · stufft · stuftt · stutf · sutft · tsuft

Frequency comparison

säuft#44,266
stuft#37,231

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "säuft" and "stuft" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈzɔɪ̯ft] versus [ʃtuːft]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "säuft" or "stuft"?
"stuft" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #37,231 in our German list, against #44,266 for "säuft". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering säuft vs stuft

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “säuft” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list