SchattenvsSchottenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#2,612
“Schatten” frequency rank
#16,542
“Schotten” frequency rank
19154
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Schatten Schotten
Definition ein nicht direkt beleuchteter Bereich ausgetrockneter Topfen, zu Bröseln zerfallener Käse

Where the eye mixes Schatten and Schotten

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.

8 ch
Schatten
8 ch
Schotten

Why the eye confuses Schatten with Schotten

A purely visual mix-up. Schatten ([ˈʃatn̩]) and Schotten ([ˈʃɔtn̩]) 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 a single letter - a in “Schatten” becomes o in “Schotten”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 19154, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Schatten is recorded at frequency rank #2,612, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃatn̩]. Schotten is at rank #16,542, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃɔtn̩].

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 19154, this pair ranks #1,911,304 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Schatten vs Schotten

Shared letters: cehnst. Private to "Schatten": a. Private to "Schotten": o.

"Schatten" · 8 letters · shape CCCVCCVC  ·  "Schotten" · 8 letters · shape CCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Schattencshatten · scahtten · scchatten · schaten · schatetn · schattenn · schattne · schhatten
  • Schottencshotten · scchotten · schhotten · schoten · schotetn · schottenn · schottne · schtoten

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Schatten" for "Schotten" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃatn̩] versus [ˈʃɔtn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Schatten" or "Schotten"?
"Schatten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,612 in our German list, against #16,542 for "Schotten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Schatten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Schotten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,911,304 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Schatten" and "Schotten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schätzten vs Schotten". 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 #1,911,304 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