StärkevsstartsWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#2,998
“Stärke” frequency rank
#22,904
“starts” frequency rank
25902
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Stärke starts
Definition Kraft, Macht, Potenz, Vermögen, insbesondere 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs start

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Stärke and starts apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
Stärke
6 ch
starts

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: Stärke is anoun and startsaverb. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25902, 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]. starts is at rank #22,904, tagged as averb, pronounced […].

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 25902, this pair ranks #1,826,253 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Stärke vs starts

Shared letters: rst. Private to "Stärke": ekä. Private to "starts": a.

"Stärke" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCV  ·  "starts" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • startssatrts · sstarts · starrts · starst · startss · startts · statrs · strats

Frequency comparison

Stärke#2,998
starts#22,904

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Stärke" and "starts" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Stärke" is a noun and "starts" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Stärke" or "starts"?
"Stärke" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,998 in our German list, against #22,904 for "starts". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Stärke vs starts

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Stärke”; for a verb, it's “starts”.
  • 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