Which to use
“Stress” and “Stuss” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,689
- “Stress” frequency rank
- #42,853
- “Stuss” frequency rank
- 45542
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Stress | Stuss |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | anhaltende geistige, seelische oder körperliche Anspannung durch Überbeanspruchung oder schädliche Reize; seelischer Druck | etwas, das (ärgerlicherweise) unsinnig geäußert oder getan wurde; etwas Unsinniges, Sinnloses, Törichtes |
Where the eye mixes Stress and Stuss
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. Stress runs 6 letters (CCCVCC) against Stuss's 5 (CCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between Stress and Stuss
A purely visual mix-up. Stress ([ʃtʁɛs]) and Stuss ([ʃtʊs]) 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 45542, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Stress is recorded at frequency rank #2,689, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃtʁɛs]. Stuss is at rank #42,853, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʃtʊs].
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 45542, this pair ranks #1,349,496 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Stress vs Stuss
Shared letters: st. Private to "Stress": er. Private to "Stuss": u.
"Stress" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCC · "Stuss" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Stress" and "Stuss" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "Stress" vs "Stuss" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Stress" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Stuss" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,349,496 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Stress" and "Stuss" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Stuss vs SUVs". 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 #1,349,496 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.