Which to use
“steuern” and “steuerte” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,042
- “steuern” frequency rank
- #20,068
- “steuerte” frequency rank
- 22110
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | steuern | steuerte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ein Fahrzeug oder ein technisches Gerät lenken | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs steuern |
Where the eye mixes steuern and steuerte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. steuern runs 7 letters (CCVVVCC) against steuerte's 8 (CCVVVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between steuern and steuerte
A purely visual mix-up. steuern ([ˈʃtɔɪ̯ɐn]) and steuerte ([ˈʃtɔɪ̯ɐtə]) 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 22110, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
steuern is recorded at frequency rank #2,042, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtɔɪ̯ɐn]. steuerte is at rank #20,068, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtɔɪ̯ɐtə].
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 22110, this pair ranks #1,878,168 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of steuern vs steuerte
Shared letters: erstu. Private to "steuern": n. Private to "steuerte": -.
"steuern" · 7 letters · shape CCVVVCC · "steuerte" · 8 letters · shape CCVVVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "steuern" and "steuerte" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "steuern" or "steuerte"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "steuern" and "steuerte" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "steuern" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "steuerte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,878,168 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "steuern" and "steuerte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "steter vs steuern". 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 #1,878,168 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.