Which to use
“Stele” and “Stufe” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #40,226
- “Stele” frequency rank
- #2,997
- “Stufe” frequency rank
- 43223
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Stele | Stufe |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Grabstein, Gedenkstein der Antike, Pfeiler mit einer Inschrift- oder Bildtafel; heute auch moderne freistehende Informationstafel | meist einzelner Teil einer Treppe, der zum Höher- oder Tiefersteigen dient, Trittfläche |
Where the eye mixes Stele and Stufe
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. Stele and Stufe follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCVCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: Stele vs Stufe
A purely visual mix-up. Stele ([ˈʃteːlə]) and Stufe ([ˈʃtuːfə]) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43223, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Stele is recorded at frequency rank #40,226, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃteːlə]. Stufe is at rank #2,997, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃtuːfə].
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 43223, this pair ranks #1,424,866 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Stele vs Stufe
Shared letters: est. Private to "Stele": l. Private to "Stufe": fu.
"Stele" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "Stufe" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Stele" and "Stufe" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "Stele" or "Stufe"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "Stele" and "Stufe" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Stele" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Stufe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,424,866 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Stele" and "Stufe" 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 #1,424,866 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.