Which to use
“Schere” and “Schurke” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,742
- “Schere” frequency rank
- #49,237
- “Schurke” frequency rank
- 59979
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Schere | Schurke |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Gerät zum Schneiden von Papier und anderer dünner Materialien | jemand, der moralisch verwerflich handelt |
Where the eye mixes Schere and Schurke
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. Schere runs 6 letters (CCCVCV) against Schurke's 7 (CCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between Schere and Schurke
A purely visual mix-up. Schere ([ˈʃeːʁə]) and Schurke ([ˈʃʊʁkə]) 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 59979, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Schere is recorded at frequency rank #10,742, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃeːʁə]. Schurke is at rank #49,237, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃʊʁkə].
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 59979, this pair ranks #804,165 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Schere vs Schurke
Shared letters: cehrs. Private to "Schere": -. Private to "Schurke": ku.
"Schere" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCV · "Schurke" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Schere" and "Schurke" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "Schere" or "Schurke" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Schere" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Schurke" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #804,165 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Schere" and "Schurke" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schlucke vs Schurke". 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 #804,165 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.