schaltetvsschüttetTell them apart

Which to use

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

#9,624
“schaltet” frequency rank
#29,777
“schüttet” frequency rank
39401
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature schaltet schüttet
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs schalten 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs schütten

Where the eye mixes schaltet and schüttet

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

8 ch
schaltet
8 ch
schüttet

Why the eye confuses schaltet with schüttet

A purely visual mix-up. schaltet ([ˈʃaltət]) and schüttet ([ˈʃʏtət]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39401, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

schaltet is recorded at frequency rank #9,624, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃaltət]. schüttet is at rank #29,777, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃʏtət].

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 39401, this pair ranks #1,537,834 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of schaltet vs schüttet

Shared letters: cehst. Private to "schaltet": al. Private to "schüttet": ü.

"schaltet" · 8 letters · shape CCCVCCVC  ·  "schüttet" · 8 letters · shape CCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • schaltetcshaltet · scahltet · scchaltet · schalett · schalltet · schaltett · schaltte · schalttet

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "schaltet" and "schüttet" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃaltət] versus [ˈʃʏtət]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "schaltet" or "schüttet"?
"schaltet" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,624 in our German list, against #29,777 for "schüttet". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "schaltet" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "schüttet" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,537,834 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "schaltet" and "schüttet" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schütt vs schüttet". 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 #1,537,834 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