StrassevsstressenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Strasse is a noun, stressen is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Strasse” is a noun and “stressen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#462
“Strasse” frequency rank
#42,850
“stressen” frequency rank
43312
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Strasse stressen
Definition Variante für den Dativ Singular des Substantivs Strass unter Druck setzen; jemanden psychisch belasten; Stress auslösen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Strasse and stressen apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
Strasse
8 ch
stressen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Strasse is [ˈʃtʁasə] while stressen is [ˈʃtʁɛsn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43312, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Strasse is recorded at frequency rank #462, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃtʁasə]. stressen is at rank #42,850, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtʁɛsn̩].

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 43312, this pair ranks #1,422,003 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Strasse vs stressen

Shared letters: erst. Private to "Strasse": a. Private to "stressen": n.

"Strasse" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCCV  ·  "stressen" · 8 letters · shape CCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Strassesrtasse · sstrasse · starsse · strase · strases · straße · strrasse · strsase
  • stressensrtessen · sstressen · sterssen · stresen · stresesn · stressenn · stressne · streßen

Frequency comparison

Strasse#462
stressen#42,850

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Strasse" and "stressen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Strasse" is a noun and "stressen" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Strasse" or "stressen"?
"Strasse" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #462 in our German list, against #42,850 for "stressen". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering Strasse vs stressen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Strasse”; for a verb, it's “stressen”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Strasse” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list