Which to use
“scheu” is an adjective and “Seher” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,198
- “scheu” frequency rank
- #39,624
- “Seher” frequency rank
- 54822
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | scheu | Seher |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | aus Angst, Unbehagen oder Scham zurückhaltend und soziale Kontakte vermeidend | jemand, der sich etwas ansieht |
Where the eye mixes scheu and Seher
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between scheu and Seher
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: scheu is [ʃɔɪ̯] while Seher is [ˈzeːɐ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54822, 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]. Seher is at rank #39,624, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈzeːɐ].
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 54822, this pair ranks #1,003,621 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of scheu vs Seher
Shared letters: ehs. Private to "scheu": cu. Private to "Seher": r.
"scheu" · 5 letters · shape CCCVV · "Seher" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "scheu" for "Seher" ever safe?
Which is more common, "scheu" or "Seher"?
Useful next steps
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 "Seher" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,003,621 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "scheu" and "Seher" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Seher vs steter". 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 #1,003,621 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.