startenvsstürmtenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“starten” and “stürmten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#1,990
“starten” frequency rank
#32,296
“stürmten” frequency rank
34286
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature starten stürmten
Definition einen Vorgang beginnen 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs stürmen

Where the spellings diverge

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

7 ch
starten
8 ch
stürmten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. starten ([ˈʃtaʁtn̩]) and stürmten ([ˈʃtʏʁmtn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34286, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

starten is recorded at frequency rank #1,990, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtaʁtn̩]. stürmten is at rank #32,296, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtʏʁmtn̩].

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 34286, this pair ranks #1,666,788 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of starten vs stürmten

Shared letters: enrst. Private to "starten": a. Private to "stürmten": .

"starten" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC  ·  "stürmten" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • startensatrten · sstarten · staretn · starrten · startenn · startne · startten · statren

Frequency comparison

starten#1,990
stürmten#32,296

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "starten" and "stürmten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃtaʁtn̩] versus [ˈʃtʏʁmtn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "starten" or "stürmten"?
"starten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,990 in our German list, against #32,296 for "stürmten". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering starten vs stürmten

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “starten” 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