Which to use
“seufzen” and “stürzen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #37,776
- “seufzen” frequency rank
- #6,362
- “stürzen” frequency rank
- 44138
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | seufzen | stürzen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | hörbar und heftig ein- und ausatmen, als Zeichen starker Gefühle wie Kummer, Erleichterung oder Resignation | eine hilflose, ungewollte Bewegung nach unten ausführen |
Where the eye mixes seufzen and stürzen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. seufzen (CVVCCVC) and stürzen (CCVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses seufzen with stürzen
A purely visual mix-up. seufzen ([ˈzɔɪ̯ft͡sn̩]) and stürzen ([ˈʃtʏʁt͡sn̩]) 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 44138, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
seufzen is recorded at frequency rank #37,776, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈzɔɪ̯ft͡sn̩]. stürzen is at rank #6,362, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtʏʁt͡sn̩].
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 44138, this pair ranks #1,395,804 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of seufzen vs stürzen
Shared letters: ensz. Private to "seufzen": fu. Private to "stürzen": rtü.
"seufzen" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVC · "stürzen" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- seufzen ← esufzen · sefuzen · seufezn · seuffzen · seufzenn · seufzne · seufzzen · seuzfen
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "seufzen" for "stürzen" ever safe?
Which is more common, "seufzen" or "stürzen"?
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 "seufzen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "stürzen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,395,804 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "seufzen" and "stürzen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "seufzen vs Seufzer". 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 #1,395,804 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.