scheinenvsscheinstConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#2,361
“scheinen” frequency rank
#12,579
“scheinst” frequency rank
14940
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature scheinen scheinst
Definition Licht aussenden 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs scheinen

Where the eye mixes scheinen and scheinst

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

8 ch
scheinen
8 ch
scheinst

Look-alike desk: scheinen vs scheinst

A purely visual mix-up. scheinen ([ˈʃaɪ̯nən]) and scheinst ([ʃaɪ̯nst]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14940, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

scheinen is recorded at frequency rank #2,361, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃaɪ̯nən]. scheinst is at rank #12,579, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃaɪ̯nst].

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 14940, this pair ranks #1,947,619 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of scheinen vs scheinst

Shared letters: cehins. Private to "scheinen": -. Private to "scheinst": t.

"scheinen" · 8 letters · shape CCCVVCVC  ·  "scheinst" · 8 letters · shape CCCVVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • scheinencsheinen · sccheinen · scehinen · scheienn · scheinenn · scheinne · scheinnen · schenien
  • scheinstcsheinst · sccheinst · scehinst · scheinnst · scheinsst · scheinstt · scheints · scheisnt

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "scheinen" for "scheinst" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃaɪ̯nən] versus [ʃaɪ̯nst]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "scheinen" or "scheinst"?
"scheinen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,361 in our German list, against #12,579 for "scheinst". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "scheinen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "scheinst" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,947,619 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "scheinen" and "scheinst" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "scheinst vs schenkst". 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 #1,947,619 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