Which to use
“stehn” is a verb and “steif” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #24,938
- “stehn” frequency rank
- #13,946
- “steif” frequency rank
- 38884
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | stehn | steif |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | stehen | unbiegsam, fest, starr |
Where the eye mixes stehn and steif
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between stehn and steif
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: stehn is [ʃteːn] while steif is [ʃtaɪ̯f]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38884, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
stehn is recorded at frequency rank #24,938, classified as averb, pronounced [ʃteːn]. steif is at rank #13,946, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ʃtaɪ̯f].
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 38884, this pair ranks #1,552,085 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of stehn vs steif
Shared letters: est. Private to "stehn": hn. Private to "steif": fi.
"stehn" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC · "steif" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "stehn" for "steif" ever safe?
Frequency check: "stehn" vs "steif" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "stehn" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "steif" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,552,085 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "stehn" and "steif" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "stehn vs steps". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #1,552,085 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.