störendvsstrengConfusable pair

Which to use

“störend” and “streng” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#20,075
“störend” frequency rank
#3,777
“streng” frequency rank
23852
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature störend streng
Definition behindernd in einem Ablauf oder Prozess auf genaue Einhaltung der Regeln wertlegend

Where the eye mixes störend and streng

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. störend runs 7 letters (CCVCVCC) against streng's 6 (CCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
störend
6 ch
streng

Why the eye confuses störend with streng

A purely visual mix-up. störend ([ˈʃtøːʁənt]) and streng ([ʃtʁɛŋ]) 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 23852, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

störend is recorded at frequency rank #20,075, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃtøːʁənt]. streng is at rank #3,777, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ʃtʁɛŋ].

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 23852, this pair ranks #1,855,774 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of störend vs streng

Shared letters: enrst. Private to "störend": dö. Private to "streng": g.

"störend" · 7 letters · shape CCVCVCC  ·  "streng" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • streng ← srteng · sstreng · sterng · stregn · strengg · strenng · strneg · strreng

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "störend" and "streng" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃtøːʁənt] versus [ʃtʁɛŋ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "störend" vs "streng" - which ranks higher?
"streng" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,777 in our German list, against #20,075 for "störend". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "störend" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "streng" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,855,774 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "störend" and "streng" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "stoned vs störend". 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 #1,855,774 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list