StreitvsstreitigTell them apart

Quick tell: Streit is a noun, streitig is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Streit” is a noun and “streitig” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,087
“Streit” frequency rank
#31,284
“streitig” frequency rank
33371
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Streit streitig
Definition heftig ausgetragene Kollision von Interessen oder Meinungen den Gegenstand eines Rechtsstreits oder einer Zweifelsfrage bildend

Where the eye mixes Streit and streitig

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. Streit runs 6 letters (CCCVVC) against streitig's 8 (CCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
Streit
8 ch
streitig

Look-alike desk: Streit vs streitig

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Streit is [ʃtʁaɪ̯t] while streitig is [ˈʃtʁaɪ̯tɪç]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “Streit” sits inside “streitig”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33371, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Streit is recorded at frequency rank #2,087, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃtʁaɪ̯t]. streitig is at rank #31,284, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃtʁaɪ̯tɪç].

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 33371, this pair ranks #1,687,409 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Streit vs streitig

Shared letters: eirst. Private to "Streit": -. Private to "streitig": g.

"Streit" · 6 letters · shape CCCVVC  ·  "streitig" · 8 letters · shape CCCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Streit ← srteit · sstreit · sterit · streitt · streti · striet · strreit · sttreit
  • streitig ← srteitig · sstreitig · steritig · streiitg · streitgi · streitigg · streittig · stretiig

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Streit" and "streitig" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Streit" is a noun and "streitig" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Streit" or "streitig"?
"Streit" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,087 in our German list, against #31,284 for "streitig". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

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 "Streit" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "streitig" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,687,409 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Streit" and "streitig" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Streiter vs streitig". 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 #1,687,409 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