Which to use
“Städten” is a noun and “stärken” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,088
- “Städten” frequency rank
- #3,487
- “stärken” frequency rank
- 5575
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Städten | stärken |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Dativ Plural des Substantivs Stadt | stark, belastbar machen; kräftiger, leistungsfähiger machen |
Where the eye mixes Städten and stärken
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Städten vs stärken
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Städten is [ˈʃtɛːtn̩] while stärken is [ˈʃtɛʁkn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 5575, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Städten is recorded at frequency rank #2,088, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃtɛːtn̩]. stärken is at rank #3,487, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtɛʁkn̩].
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 5575, this pair ranks #1,994,350 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Städten vs stärken
Shared letters: enstä. Private to "Städten": d. Private to "stärken": kr.
"Städten" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC · "stärken" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Städten" and "stärken" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "Städten" or "stärken" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Städten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "stärken" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,994,350 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Städten" and "stärken" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "stärken vs stärkte". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,994,350 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.