Which to use
“streiche” and “streicheln” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #26,631
- “streiche” frequency rank
- #15,755
- “streicheln” frequency rank
- 42386
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | streiche | streicheln |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs streichen | etwas/jemanden streicheln; (meist mit der flachen Hand bzw. mit den Fingern) sanft über das Äußere eines Tieres, Menschen oder selten auch Gegenstandes fahren |
Where the eye mixes streiche and streicheln
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. streiche runs 8 letters (CCCVVCCV) against streicheln's 10 (CCCVVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: streiche vs streicheln
A purely visual mix-up. streiche ([ˈʃtʁaɪ̯çə]) and streicheln ([ˈʃtʁaɪ̯çl̩n]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “streiche” sits inside “streicheln”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42386, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
streiche is recorded at frequency rank #26,631, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtʁaɪ̯çə]. streicheln is at rank #15,755, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtʁaɪ̯çl̩n].
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 42386, this pair ranks #1,451,011 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of streiche vs streicheln
Shared letters: cehirst. Private to "streiche": -. Private to "streicheln": ln.
"streiche" · 8 letters · shape CCCVVCCV · "streicheln" · 10 letters · shape CCCVVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- streiche ← srteiche · sstreiche · steriche · strecihe · streicche · streiceh · streichhe · streihce
- streicheln ← srteicheln · sstreicheln · stericheln · streciheln · streiccheln · streicehln · streichelln · streichelnn
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "streiche" and "streicheln" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "streiche" or "streicheln"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "streiche" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "streicheln" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,451,011 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "streiche" and "streicheln" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "streiche vs stricke". 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 #1,451,011 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.