scalevsSchafeConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#31,769
“scale” frequency rank
#7,390
“Schafe” frequency rank
39159
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature scale Schafe
Definition Waage Variante für den Dativ Singular des Substantivs Schaf

Where the eye mixes scale and Schafe

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

5 ch
scale
6 ch
Schafe

Look-alike desk: scale vs Schafe

A purely visual mix-up. scale ([skeɪl]) and Schafe ([ˈʃaːfə]) 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 39159, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

scale is recorded at frequency rank #31,769, classified as anoun, pronounced [skeɪl]. Schafe is at rank #7,390, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃaːfə].

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 39159, this pair ranks #1,544,488 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of scale vs Schafe

Shared letters: aces. Private to "scale": l. Private to "Schafe": fh.

"scale" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV  ·  "Schafe" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • scalecsale · sacle · scael · scalle · sccale · sclae · sscale
  • Schafecshafe · scahfe · scchafe · schaef · schfae · schhafe · shcafe · sschafe

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "scale" and "Schafe" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([skeɪl] versus [ˈʃaːfə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "scale" vs "Schafe" - which ranks higher?
"Schafe" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,390 in our German list, against #31,769 for "scale". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "scale" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Schafe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,544,488 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "scale" and "Schafe" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Sake vs scale". 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 #1,544,488 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