Which to use
“sterben” is a verb and “Sterbende” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,336
- “sterben” frequency rank
- #31,808
- “Sterbende” frequency rank
- 33144
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sterben | Sterbende |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | aufhören zu leben | weibliche Person, die so krank oder verletzt (siehe auch: sterbenskrank) ist, dass sie in wenigen Stunden oder Tagen sterben (= das Leben beenden, ableben) wird |
Where the eye mixes sterben and Sterbende
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. sterben runs 7 letters (CCVCCVC) against Sterbende's 9 (CCVCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between sterben and Sterbende
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: sterben is [ˈʃtɛʁbn̩] while Sterbende is [ˈʃtɛʁbn̩də]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “sterben” sits inside “Sterbende”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33144, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sterben is recorded at frequency rank #1,336, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtɛʁbn̩]. Sterbende is at rank #31,808, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃtɛʁbn̩də].
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 33144, this pair ranks #1,692,333 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of sterben vs Sterbende
Shared letters: benrst. Private to "sterben": -. Private to "Sterbende": d.
"sterben" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC · "Sterbende" · 9 letters · shape CCVCCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "sterben" for "Sterbende" ever safe?
Which is more common, "sterben" or "Sterbende"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "sterben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Sterbende" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,692,333 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "sterben" and "Sterbende" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Sterbende vs störende". 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 #1,692,333 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.