Which to use
“Stift” and “stile” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,108
- “Stift” frequency rank
- #14,180
- “stile” frequency rank
- 20288
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Stift | stile |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | künstlich hergestellter länglicher, meist zylindrischer Körper aus Metall oder Holz, oft mit einer Spitze, der vielfachen Verwendungsmöglichkeiten dient | Stil m |
Where the eye mixes Stift and stile
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Stift vs stile
A purely visual mix-up. Stift ([ʃtɪft]) and stile ([ˈstiːle]) 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 20288, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Stift is recorded at frequency rank #6,108, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃtɪft]. stile is at rank #14,180, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈstiːle].
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 20288, this pair ranks #1,899,326 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Stift vs stile
Shared letters: ist. Private to "Stift": f. Private to "stile": el.
"Stift" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC · "stile" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Stift" for "stile" ever safe?
Frequency check: "Stift" vs "stile" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Stift" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "stile" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,899,326 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Stift" and "stile" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "stile 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 #1,899,326 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.