selbstvsstellstWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: selbst is a pronoun, stellst is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“selbst” is a pronoun and “stellst” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#122
“selbst” frequency rank
#9,987
“stellst” frequency rank
10109
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature selbst stellst
Definition persönlich (immer in Kontrast zu anderen Möglichkeiten, die im Kontext enthalten sind) 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs stellen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set selbst and stellst apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
selbst
7 ch
stellst

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

selbst and stellst form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10109, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

selbst is recorded at frequency rank #122, classified as apron, pronounced [zɛlpst]. stellst is at rank #9,987, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃtɛlst].

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 10109, this pair ranks #1,976,749 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

selbst#122
stellst#9,987

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "selbst" and "stellst" be used interchangeably?
No, "selbst" and "stellst" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering selbst vs stellst

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a pronoun, it's “selbst”; for a verb, it's “stellst”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “selbst” 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