Which to use
“Steine” and “Stele” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,850
- “Steine” frequency rank
- #40,226
- “Stele” frequency rank
- 44076
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Steine | Stele |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Variante für den Dativ Singular des Substantivs Stein | Grabstein, Gedenkstein der Antike, Pfeiler mit einer Inschrift- oder Bildtafel; heute auch moderne freistehende Informationstafel |
Where the eye mixes Steine and Stele
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Steine vs Stele
A purely visual mix-up. Steine ([ˈʃtaɪ̯nə]) and Stele ([ˈʃteːlə]) 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 44076, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Steine is recorded at frequency rank #3,850, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃtaɪ̯nə]. Stele is at rank #40,226, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃteːlə].
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 44076, this pair ranks #1,397,794 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Steine vs Stele
Shared letters: est. Private to "Steine": in. Private to "Stele": l.
"Steine" · 6 letters · shape CCVVCV · "Stele" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Steine" and "Stele" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "Steine" vs "Stele" - 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 "Steine" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Stele" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,397,794 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Steine" and "Stele" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Stele 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 #1,397,794 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.