Which to use
“scheren” and “schoben” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,054
- “scheren” frequency rank
- #44,203
- “schoben” frequency rank
- 62257
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | scheren | schoben |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas mit einer Schere oder ähnlichem Gerät entfernen, etwas mit einer Schere oder ähnlichem Gerät von etwas befreien | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs schieben |
Where the eye mixes scheren and schoben
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. scheren and schoben follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses scheren with schoben
A purely visual mix-up. scheren ([ˈʃeːʁən]) and schoben ([ˈʃoːbn̩]) 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 62257, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
scheren is recorded at frequency rank #18,054, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃeːʁən]. schoben is at rank #44,203, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃoːbn̩].
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 62257, this pair ranks #719,591 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of scheren vs schoben
Shared letters: cehns. Private to "scheren": r. Private to "schoben": bo.
"scheren" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCVC · "schoben" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "scheren" for "schoben" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "scheren" or "schoben" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "scheren" and "schoben" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "scheren" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schoben" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #719,591 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "scheren" and "schoben" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schoben vs schrien". 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 #719,591 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.