Which to use
“scheu” and “scheue” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,198
- “scheu” frequency rank
- #42,110
- “scheue” frequency rank
- 57308
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | scheu | scheue |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | aus Angst, Unbehagen oder Scham zurückhaltend und soziale Kontakte vermeidend | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs scheu |
Where the eye mixes scheu and scheue
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses scheu with scheue
A purely visual mix-up. scheu ([ʃɔɪ̯]) and scheue ([ˈʃɔɪ̯ə]) 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 extra letter(s) - “scheu” sits inside “scheue”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 57308, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
scheu is recorded at frequency rank #15,198, classified as anadj, pronounced [ʃɔɪ̯]. scheue is at rank #42,110, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃɔɪ̯ə].
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 57308, this pair ranks #906,336 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of scheu vs scheue
Shared letters: cehsu. Private to "scheu": -. Private to "scheue": -.
"scheu" · 5 letters · shape CCCVV · "scheue" · 6 letters · shape CCCVVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "scheu" for "scheue" ever safe?
Frequency check: "scheu" vs "scheue" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "scheu" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "scheue" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #906,336 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "scheu" and "scheue" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "scheue vs schiere". 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 #906,336 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.