Which to use
“scherze” and “scherzt” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #24,110
- “scherze” frequency rank
- #38,991
- “scherzt” frequency rank
- 63101
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | scherze | scherzt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs scherzen | 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs scherzen |
Where the eye mixes scherze and scherzt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. scherze (CCCVCCV) and scherzt (CCCVCCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between scherze and scherzt
A purely visual mix-up. scherze ([ˈʃɛʁt͡sə]) and scherzt ([ʃɛʁt͡st]) 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 a single letter - e in “scherze” becomes t in “scherzt”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63101, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
scherze is recorded at frequency rank #24,110, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃɛʁt͡sə]. scherzt is at rank #38,991, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃɛʁt͡st].
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 63101, this pair ranks #688,787 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of scherze vs scherzt
Shared letters: cehrsz. Private to "scherze": -. Private to "scherzt": t.
"scherze" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCCV · "scherzt" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "scherze" for "scherzt" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "scherze" or "scherzt" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "scherze" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "scherzt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #688,787 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "scherze" and "scherzt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "scher vs scherzt". 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 #688,787 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.