stellenvsStellungWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: stellen is a verb, Stellung is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“stellen” is a verb and “Stellung” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#370
“stellen” frequency rank
#2,742
“Stellung” frequency rank
3112
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature stellen Stellung
Definition senkrecht, mit den Füßen den Boden, einen bestimmten Platz oder Gegenstand berührend, in eine bestimmte oder übliche Position bringen berufliche Position

Where the spellings diverge

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

7 ch
stellen
8 ch
Stellung

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: stellen is [ˈʃtɛlən] while Stellung is [ˈʃtɛlʊŋ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 3112, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

stellen is recorded at frequency rank #370, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtɛlən]. Stellung is at rank #2,742, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃtɛlʊŋ].

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 3112, this pair ranks #2,000,922 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of stellen vs Stellung

Shared letters: elnst. Private to "stellen": -. Private to "Stellung": gu.

"stellen" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC  ·  "Stellung" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • stellensetllen · sstellen · steleln · stellenn · stellne · stlelen · sttellen · tsellen
  • Stellungsetllung · sstellung · stellnug · stellugn · stellungg · stellunng · stelulng · stelung

Frequency comparison

stellen#370
Stellung#2,742

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "stellen" and "Stellung" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "stellen" is a verb and "Stellung" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "stellen" or "Stellung"?
"stellen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #370 in our German list, against #2,742 for "Stellung". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering stellen vs Stellung

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “stellen”; for a noun, it's “Stellung”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “stellen” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list