schertvsschüttConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#24,911
“schert” frequency rank
#47,721
“schütt” frequency rank
72632
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature schert schütt
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs scheren 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs schütten

Where the eye mixes schert and schütt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
schert
6 ch
schütt

Why the eye confuses schert with schütt

A purely visual mix-up. schert ([ʃeːɐ̯t]) and schütt ([ʃʏt]) 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 72632, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

schert is recorded at frequency rank #24,911, classified as averb, pronounced [ʃeːɐ̯t]. schütt is at rank #47,721, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃʏt].

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 72632, this pair ranks #382,855 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of schert vs schütt

Shared letters: chst. Private to "schert": er. Private to "schütt": ü.

"schert" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCC  ·  "schütt" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • schertcshert · scchert · scehrt · scherrt · schertt · schetr · schhert · schret

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "schert" for "schütt" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ʃeːɐ̯t] versus [ʃʏt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "schert" vs "schütt" - which ranks higher?
"schert" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #24,911 in our German list, against #47,721 for "schütt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "schert" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "schütt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #382,855 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "schert" and "schütt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schütt vs shut". 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 #382,855 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