StärkevsstärksteWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Stärke is a noun, stärkste is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Stärke” is a noun and “stärkste” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,998
“Stärke” frequency rank
#7,672
“stärkste” frequency rank
10670
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Stärke stärkste
Definition Kraft, Macht, Potenz, Vermögen, insbesondere Nominativ Singular Femininum Superlativ der starken Flexion des Adjektivs stark

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
Stärke
8 ch
stärkste

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Stärke is [ˈʃtɛʁkə] while stärkste is [ˈʃtɛʁkstə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10670, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Stärke is recorded at frequency rank #2,998, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃtɛʁkə]. stärkste is at rank #7,672, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃtɛʁkstə].

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 10670, this pair ranks #1,973,949 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Stärke vs stärkste

Shared letters: ekrstä. Private to "Stärke": -. Private to "stärkste": -.

"Stärke" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCV  ·  "stärkste" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCCCV

Frequency comparison

Stärke#2,998
stärkste#7,672

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Stärke" and "stärkste" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Stärke" is a noun and "stärkste" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Stärke" or "stärkste"?
"Stärke" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,998 in our German list, against #7,672 for "stärkste". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Stärke vs stärkste

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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