bestärken

[bəˈʃtɛʁkn̩]

/[bəˈʃtɛʁkn̩]/ verb

The verdict

“bestärken” is a moderately-common German word, ranked #37,403 in German word frequency and used as a verb.

#37,403
frequency rank, German
9
letters
14
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - jemanden in einer Haltung, einem Vorhaben stützen und ermutigen

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

bestärken vs bestärkt
78% similar
bestärken vs bestaunen
67% similar
bestärken vs bestanden
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for bestärken
PropertyValue
Headwordbestärken
LanguageGerman
Part of speechVerb
IPA[bəˈʃtɛʁkn̩]
Letters9
Frequency rank#37,403
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “bestärken” sits in German frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). bestärken lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The German entry for bestärken is 9 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [bəˈʃtɛʁkn̩]. Corpus data places it at rank #37,403 in overall German word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for bestärken, with forms such as "bbestärken", "besstärken", and "besträken". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 3 confusable-pair relationships, "bestärkt", "bestaunen", "bestanden", a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct German form is bestärken, spelled B-E-S-T-Ä-R-K-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    jemanden in einer Haltung, einem Vorhaben stützen und ermutigen
  2. 2
    etwas bestärkt sich: stärker werden
  3. 3
    ein Resultat sicherer werden lassen; verstärken, fördern

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: bbestärken,besstärken,besträken,besttärken,bestäkren,bestärekn,bestärkenn,bestärkken,bestärkne,bestärrken,besätrken,betsärken,bsetärken,ebstärken

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of bestärken - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

bbestärken1besstärken1besträken2besttärken1bestäkren2bestärekn2bestärkenn1bestärkken1
Edit distance from "bestärken"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 German corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "bestärken"?
"bestärken" is spelled B-E-S-T-Ä-R-K-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is [bəˈʃtɛʁkn̩].
What does "bestärken" mean?
As a verb, "bestärken" means: jemanden in einer Haltung, einem Vorhaben stützen und ermutigen
What words are commonly confused with "bestärken"?
"bestärken" is commonly confused with "bestärkt", "bestaunen", "bestanden". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "bestärken"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bestärken" is [bəˈʃtɛʁkn̩]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "bestärken" come from?
"bestärken" is a German word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “bestärken”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct German spelling is B-E-S-T-Ä-R-K-E-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [bəˈʃtɛʁkn̩] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “bestärkt” - see the side-by-side comparison. bestärken vs bestärkt
  • Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list