starrevsstateWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: starre is a verb, state is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

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

#18,710
“starre” frequency rank
#7,114
“state” frequency rank
25824
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature starre state
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs starren auf den Staat bezogen: staatlich

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set starre and state apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
starre
5 ch
state

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

starre and state form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25824, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

starre is recorded at frequency rank #18,710, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtaʁə]. state is at rank #7,114, tagged as anadj, pronounced [steit].

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 25824, this pair ranks #1,827,431 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

starre#18,710
state#7,114

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "starre" and "state" be used interchangeably?
No, "starre" and "state" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering starre vs state

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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