Which to use
“Schah” and “Schmach” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #38,385
- “Schah” frequency rank
- #32,758
- “Schmach” frequency rank
- 71143
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Schah | Schmach |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | persischer, afghanischer, nordindischer sowie osmanischer Herrschertitel | erhebliche Beeinträchtigung des Ansehens, durch andere beigebracht |
Where the eye mixes Schah and Schmach
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. Schah runs 5 letters (CCCVC) against Schmach's 7 (CCCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: Schah vs Schmach
A purely visual mix-up. Schah ([ʃaː]) and Schmach ([ʃmaːx]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 71143, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Schah is recorded at frequency rank #38,385, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃaː]. Schmach is at rank #32,758, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʃmaːx].
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 71143, this pair ranks #425,384 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of Schah vs Schmach
Shared letters: achs. Private to "Schah": -. Private to "Schmach": m.
"Schah" · 5 letters · shape CCCVC · "Schmach" · 7 letters · shape CCCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Schah" and "Schmach" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "Schah" or "Schmach"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Schah" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Schmach" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #425,384 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Schah" and "Schmach" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schah vs Schalk". 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 #425,384 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.