Which to use
“Schaufel” and “Schaufeln” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #25,749
- “Schaufel” frequency rank
- #24,910
- “Schaufeln” frequency rank
- 50659
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Schaufel | Schaufeln |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Handwerkzeug mit einem flachen, gebogenen Blatt und einem Stiel, um Erde, Kies, Sand, oder Material ähnlicher Konsistenz aufnehmen zu können | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Schaufel |
Where the eye mixes Schaufel and Schaufeln
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. Schaufel runs 8 letters (CCCVVCVC) against Schaufeln's 9 (CCCVVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between Schaufel and Schaufeln
A purely visual mix-up. Schaufel ([ˈʃaʊ̯fl̩]) and Schaufeln ([ˈʃaʊ̯fl̩n]) 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 1 extra letter(s) - “Schaufel” sits inside “Schaufeln”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50659, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Schaufel is recorded at frequency rank #25,749, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃaʊ̯fl̩]. Schaufeln is at rank #24,910, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃaʊ̯fl̩n].
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 50659, this pair ranks #1,165,378 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Schaufel vs Schaufeln
Shared letters: acefhlsu. Private to "Schaufel": -. Private to "Schaufeln": n.
"Schaufel" · 8 letters · shape CCCVVCVC · "Schaufeln" · 9 letters · shape CCCVVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Schaufel" for "Schaufeln" ever safe?
Frequency check: "Schaufel" vs "Schaufeln" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "Schaufel" and "Schaufeln" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Schaufel" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Schaufeln" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,165,378 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Schaufel" and "Schaufeln" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schauder vs Schaufel". 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 #1,165,378 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.