ScheckvsSchlickWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#16,817
“Scheck” frequency rank
#46,964
“Schlick” frequency rank
63781
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Scheck Schlick
Definition Zahlungsanweisung an ein Geldinstitut, einen bestimmten Geldbetrag an einen Dritten zu senden Ablagerung des Meerwassers und des Wassers der Flüsse, in die mit der Flutwelle Meerwasser eindringt; die Wattengebiete bestehen aus starken Schlickschichten.

Where the eye mixes Scheck and Schlick

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

6 ch
Scheck
7 ch
Schlick

Look-alike desk: Scheck vs Schlick

A purely visual mix-up. Scheck ([ʃɛk]) and Schlick ([ʃlɪk]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63781, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Scheck is recorded at frequency rank #16,817, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃɛk]. Schlick is at rank #46,964, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʃlɪk].

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 63781, this pair ranks #664,598 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Scheck vs Schlick

Shared letters: chks. Private to "Scheck": e. Private to "Schlick": il.

"Scheck" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCC  ·  "Schlick" · 7 letters · shape CCCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Scheckcsheck · sccheck · scehck · schcek · schecck · scheckk · schekc · schheck
  • Schlickcshlick · scchlick · schhlick · schilck · schlcik · schlicck · schlickk · schlikc

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Scheck" for "Schlick" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ʃɛk] versus [ʃlɪk]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary German text, does "Scheck" or "Schlick" show up more?
"Scheck" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,817 in our German list, against #46,964 for "Schlick". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "Scheck" and "Schlick" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Scheck" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Schlick" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #664,598 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Scheck" and "Schlick" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schlick vs schlucke". 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 #664,598 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