StapelvsstapelnWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Stapel is a noun, stapeln is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Stapel” is a noun and “stapeln” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#13,240
“Stapel” frequency rank
#26,625
“stapeln” frequency rank
39865
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Stapel stapeln
Definition etwas, das entsteht, wenn man gleichartige Dinge ordentlich aufeinanderlegt ordentlich aufeinanderlegen, einen Stapel bilden

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Stapel and stapeln apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
Stapel
7 ch
stapeln

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Stapel is [ˈʃtaːpl̩] while stapeln is [ˈʃtaːpl̩n]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “Stapel” sits inside “stapeln”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39865, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Stapel is recorded at frequency rank #13,240, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃtaːpl̩]. stapeln is at rank #26,625, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtaːpl̩n].

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 39865, this pair ranks #1,524,715 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Stapel vs stapeln

Shared letters: aelpst. Private to "Stapel": -. Private to "stapeln": n.

"Stapel" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC  ·  "stapeln" · 7 letters · shape CCVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Stapelsatpel · sstapel · staepl · stapell · staple · stappel · stpael · sttapel
  • stapelnsatpeln · sstapeln · staepln · stapelln · stapelnn · stapenl · staplen · stappeln

Frequency comparison

Stapel#13,240
stapeln#26,625

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Stapel" and "stapeln" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Stapel" is a noun and "stapeln" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Stapel" or "stapeln"?
"Stapel" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,240 in our German list, against #26,625 for "stapeln". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Stapel vs stapeln

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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