stärkstenvsstärkteTell them apart

Quick tell: stärksten is a adjective, stärkte is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“stärksten” is an adjective and “stärkte” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#6,237
“stärksten” frequency rank
#48,523
“stärkte” frequency rank
54760
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature stärksten stärkte
Definition Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Superlativs des Adjektivs stark 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs stärken

Where the eye mixes stärksten and stärkte

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.

9 ch
stärksten
7 ch
stärkte

Why the eye confuses stärksten with stärkte

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: stärksten is [ˈʃtɛʁkstn̩] while stärkte is [ˈʃtɛʁktə]. 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 (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54760, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

stärksten is recorded at frequency rank #6,237, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃtɛʁkstn̩]. stärkte is at rank #48,523, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtɛʁktə].

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 54760, this pair ranks #1,006,152 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of stärksten vs stärkte

Shared letters: ekrstä. Private to "stärksten": n. Private to "stärkte": -.

"stärksten" · 9 letters · shape CCVCCCCVC  ·  "stärkte" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCCV

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "stärksten" and "stärkte" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "stärksten" is an adjective and "stärkte" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "stärksten" or "stärkte"?
"stärksten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,237 in our German list, against #48,523 for "stärkte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "stärksten" and "stärkte" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "stärksten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "stärkte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,006,152 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "stärksten" and "stärkte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "stärkster vs stärkte". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,006,152 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list