Which to use
“schafften” and “schiffen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,989
- “schafften” frequency rank
- #10,163
- “schiffen” frequency rank
- 26152
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | schafften | schiffen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs schaffen | mit dem Schiff fahren |
Where the eye mixes schafften and schiffen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: schafften vs schiffen
A purely visual mix-up. schafften ([ˈʃaftn̩]) and schiffen ([ˈʃɪfn̩]) 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 26152, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
schafften is recorded at frequency rank #15,989, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃaftn̩]. schiffen is at rank #10,163, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃɪfn̩].
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 26152, this pair ranks #1,822,369 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of schafften vs schiffen
Shared letters: cefhns. Private to "schafften": at. Private to "schiffen": i.
"schafften" · 9 letters · shape CCCVCCCVC · "schiffen" · 8 letters · shape CCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "schafften" and "schiffen" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "schafften" vs "schiffen" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "schafften" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schiffen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,822,369 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "schafften" and "schiffen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schafften vs schätzten". 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 #1,822,369 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.