Which to use
“Schäfer” is a noun and “scher” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,971
- “Schäfer” frequency rank
- #36,007
- “scher” frequency rank
- 42978
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Schäfer | scher |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Beruf, der sich erwerbsmäßig mit dem Halten und Züchten von Schafen beschäftigt | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs scheren |
Where the eye mixes Schäfer and scher
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. Schäfer runs 7 letters (CCCVCVC) against scher's 5 (CCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses Schäfer with scher
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Schäfer is [ˈʃɛːfɐ] while scher is [ʃeːɐ̯]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42978, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Schäfer is recorded at frequency rank #6,971, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃɛːfɐ]. scher is at rank #36,007, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃeːɐ̯].
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 42978, this pair ranks #1,432,425 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Schäfer vs scher
Shared letters: cehrs. Private to "Schäfer": fä. Private to "scher": -.
"Schäfer" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCVC · "scher" · 5 letters · shape CCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- scher ← csher · sccher · scehr · scherr · schher · schre · shcer · sscher
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Schäfer" for "scher" ever safe?
Which is more common, "Schäfer" or "scher"?
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 "Schäfer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "scher" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,432,425 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Schäfer" and "scher" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Sacher vs scher". 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 #1,432,425 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.