Which to use
“scher” and “scherze” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #36,007
- “scher” frequency rank
- #24,110
- “scherze” frequency rank
- 60117
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | scher | scherze |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs scheren | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs scherzen |
Where the eye mixes scher and scherze
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. scher runs 5 letters (CCCVC) against scherze's 7 (CCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses scher with scherze
A purely visual mix-up. scher ([ʃeːɐ̯]) and scherze ([ˈʃɛʁt͡sə]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “scher” sits inside “scherze”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60117, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
scher is recorded at frequency rank #36,007, classified as averb, pronounced [ʃeːɐ̯]. scherze is at rank #24,110, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃɛʁt͡sə].
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 60117, this pair ranks #798,926 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of scher vs scherze
Shared letters: cehrs. Private to "scher": -. Private to "scherze": z.
"scher" · 5 letters · shape CCCVC · "scherze" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "scher" for "scherze" ever safe?
Which is more common, "scher" or "scherze"?
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 "scher" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "scherze" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #798,926 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "scher" and "scherze" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Sacher vs scher". 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 #798,926 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.