Which to use
“steifen” and “stiften” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #22,517
- “steifen” frequency rank
- #20,069
- “stiften” frequency rank
- 42586
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | steifen | stiften |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas steif machen; anspannen | eine Stiftung gründen und mit Geld oder anderen Werten ausstatten |
Where the eye mixes steifen and stiften
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. steifen (CCVVCVC) and stiften (CCVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: steifen vs stiften
A purely visual mix-up. steifen ([ˈʃtaɪ̯fn̩]) and stiften ([ˈʃtɪftn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42586, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
steifen is recorded at frequency rank #22,517, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtaɪ̯fn̩]. stiften is at rank #20,069, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtɪftn̩].
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 42586, this pair ranks #1,444,806 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of steifen vs stiften
Shared letters: efinst. Private to "steifen": -. Private to "stiften": -.
"steifen" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC · "stiften" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "steifen" and "stiften" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "steifen" or "stiften" show up more?
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 "steifen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "stiften" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,444,806 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "steifen" and "stiften" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "steifen vs Stilen". 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 #1,444,806 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.