Which to use
“schäme” is a verb and “Schau” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #14,170
- “schäme” frequency rank
- #976
- “Schau” frequency rank
- 15146
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | schäme | Schau |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs schämen | thematisch organisierte öffentliche Ausstellung |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set schäme and Schau apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: schäme is [ˈʃɛːmə] while Schau is [ʃaʊ̯]. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15146, 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]. Schau is at rank #976, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʃaʊ̯].
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 15146, this pair ranks #1,946,047 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of schäme vs Schau
Shared letters: chs. Private to "schäme": emä. Private to "Schau": au.
"schäme" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCV · "Schau" · 5 letters · shape CCCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- Schau ← cshau · scahu · scchau · schhau · schua · shcau · sschau
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "schäme" and "Schau" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "schäme" or "Schau"?
Remembering schäme vs Schau
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 “Schau”.
- 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