Which to use
“selbe” is a pronoun and “sterbe” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #5,306
- “selbe” frequency rank
- #9,988
- “sterbe” frequency rank
- 15294
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | selbe | sterbe |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | identisch (im Sinne von nicht wiederholbar) | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs sterben |
Where the eye mixes selbe and sterbe
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses selbe with sterbe
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: selbe is [ˈzɛlbə] while sterbe is [ˈʃtɛʁbə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (pronoun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15294, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
selbe is recorded at frequency rank #5,306, classified as apron, pronounced [ˈzɛlbə]. sterbe is at rank #9,988, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtɛʁbə].
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 15294, this pair ranks #1,945,004 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of selbe vs sterbe
Shared letters: bes. Private to "selbe": l. Private to "sterbe": rt.
"selbe" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "sterbe" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "selbe" for "sterbe" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "selbe" or "sterbe" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "selbe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "sterbe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,945,004 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "selbe" and "sterbe" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "steife vs sterbe". 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 #1,945,004 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.