Which to use
“Staat” and “Stau” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #895
- “Staat” frequency rank
- #7,819
- “Stau” frequency rank
- 8714
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Staat | Stau |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nach Einfluss oder Aufgabe gestaffeltes System aus Individuen | durch eine Behinderung oder ein Hindernis verursachte Störung des Durchflusses oder Durchgangs; Nomen acti: Ergebnis des Stauens |
Where the eye mixes Staat and Stau
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between Staat and Stau
A purely visual mix-up. Staat ([ʃtaːt]) and Stau ([ʃtaʊ̯]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 8714, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Staat is recorded at frequency rank #895, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃtaːt]. Stau is at rank #7,819, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʃtaʊ̯].
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 8714, this pair ranks #1,983,148 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Staat vs Stau
Shared letters: ast. Private to "Staat": -. Private to "Stau": u.
"Staat" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC · "Stau" · 4 letters · shape CCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Staat" for "Stau" ever safe?
Which is more common, "Staat" or "Stau"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Staat" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Stau" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,983,148 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Staat" and "Stau" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sai vs Stau". 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 #1,983,148 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.