Which to use
“scheue” is an adjective and “schiebe” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #42,110
- “scheue” frequency rank
- #24,111
- “schiebe” frequency rank
- 66221
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | scheue | schiebe |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs scheu | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs schieben |
Where the eye mixes scheue and schiebe
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. scheue runs 6 letters (CCCVVV) against schiebe's 7 (CCCVVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses scheue with schiebe
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: scheue is [ˈʃɔɪ̯ə] while schiebe is [ˈʃiːbə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 66221, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
scheue is recorded at frequency rank #42,110, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃɔɪ̯ə]. schiebe is at rank #24,111, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃiːbə].
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 66221, this pair ranks #580,501 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of scheue vs schiebe
Shared letters: cehs. Private to "scheue": u. Private to "schiebe": bi.
"scheue" · 6 letters · shape CCCVVV · "schiebe" · 7 letters · shape CCCVVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "scheue" for "schiebe" ever safe?
Which is more common, "scheue" or "schiebe"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "scheue" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schiebe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #580,501 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "scheue" and "schiebe" 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 #580,501 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.