Which to use
“sterben” and “stören” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,336
- “sterben” frequency rank
- #4,390
- “stören” frequency rank
- 5726
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sterben | stören |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | aufhören zu leben | jemanden bei etwas belästigen, von etwas ablenken, einen Vorgang hemmen, ein Vorhaben hemmen, ärgerlicherweise aufhalten |
Where the eye mixes sterben and stören
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between sterben and stören
A purely visual mix-up. sterben ([ˈʃtɛʁbn̩]) and stören ([ˈʃtøːʁən]) 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 5726, 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]. stören is at rank #4,390, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtøːʁən].
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 5726, this pair ranks #1,993,918 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of sterben vs stören
Shared letters: enrst. Private to "sterben": b. Private to "stören": ö.
"sterben" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC · "stören" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- sterben ← setrben · ssterben · stebren · sterbben · sterbenn · sterbne · sterebn · sterrben
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "sterben" and "stören" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "sterben" vs "stören" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
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 "stören" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,993,918 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "sterben" and "stören" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "stören vs storia". 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 #1,993,918 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.