schämevsSchatzWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: schäme is a verb, Schatz is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“schäme” is a verb and “Schatz” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#14,170
“schäme” frequency rank
#3,480
“Schatz” frequency rank
17650
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature schäme Schatz
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs schämen verborgene Sammlung von Gegenständen aus Edelmetall oder Edelsteinen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set schäme and Schatz apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
schäme
6 ch
Schatz

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: schäme is [ˈʃɛːmə] while Schatz is [ʃat͡s]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17650, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

schäme is recorded at frequency rank #14,170, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃɛːmə]. Schatz is at rank #3,480, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʃat͡s].

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 17650, this pair ranks #1,925,506 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of schäme vs Schatz

Shared letters: chs. Private to "schäme": emä. Private to "Schatz": atz.

"schäme" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCV  ·  "Schatz" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Schatzcshatz · scahtz · scchatz · schattz · schatzz · schazt · schhatz · schtaz

Frequency comparison

schäme#14,170
Schatz#3,480

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "schäme" and "Schatz" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "schäme" is a verb and "Schatz" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "schäme" or "Schatz"?
"Schatz" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,480 in our German list, against #14,170 for "schäme". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering schäme vs Schatz

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “schäme”; for a noun, it's “Schatz”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “schäme” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list