Which to use
“Schalter” is a noun and “schultern” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #9,623
- “Schalter” frequency rank
- #6,351
- “schultern” frequency rank
- 15974
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Schalter | schultern |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | elektrisches Bauelement zur Herstellung oder Unterbrechung einer elektrischen Verbindung | transitiv: |
Where the eye mixes Schalter and schultern
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between Schalter and schultern
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Schalter is [ˈʃaltɐ] while schultern is [ˈʃʊltɐn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 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 15974, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Schalter is recorded at frequency rank #9,623, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃaltɐ]. schultern is at rank #6,351, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃʊltɐn].
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 15974, this pair ranks #1,939,668 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Schalter vs schultern
Shared letters: cehlrst. Private to "Schalter": a. Private to "schultern": nu.
"Schalter" · 8 letters · shape CCCVCCVC · "schultern" · 9 letters · shape CCCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Schalter" and "schultern" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "Schalter" or "schultern" show up more?
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 "Schalter" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schultern" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,939,668 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Schalter" and "schultern" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schalter vs Schauder". 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 #1,939,668 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.