stürzenvsstürztenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#6,362
“stürzen” frequency rank
#24,530
“stürzten” frequency rank
30892
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature stürzen stürzten
Definition eine hilflose, ungewollte Bewegung nach unten ausführen 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs stürzen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set stürzen and stürzten apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
stürzen
8 ch
stürzten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. stürzen ([ˈʃtʏʁt͡sn̩]) and stürzten ([ˈʃtʏʁt͡stn̩]) 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 30892, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

stürzen is recorded at frequency rank #6,362, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtʏʁt͡sn̩]. stürzten is at rank #24,530, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃtʏʁt͡stn̩].

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 30892, this pair ranks #1,739,019 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of stürzen vs stürzten

Shared letters: enrstzü. Private to "stürzen": -. Private to "stürzten": -.

"stürzen" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC  ·  "stürzten" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCCVC

Frequency comparison

stürzen#6,362
stürzten#24,530

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "stürzen" and "stürzten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃtʏʁt͡sn̩] versus [ˈʃtʏʁt͡stn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "stürzen" or "stürzten"?
"stürzen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,362 in our German list, against #24,530 for "stürzten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering stürzen vs stürzten

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “stürzen” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list