scheuervsSchwurConfusable pair

Quick tell: scheuer is a adjective, Schwur is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“scheuer” is an adjective and “Schwur” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#15,742
“scheuer” frequency rank
#29,776
“Schwur” frequency rank
45518
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature scheuer Schwur
Definition Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs scheu verbindliche Festlegung auf etwas

Where the eye mixes scheuer and Schwur

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

7 ch
scheuer
6 ch
Schwur

Visual trap between scheuer and Schwur

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: scheuer is [ˈʃɔɪ̯ɐ] while Schwur is [ʃvuːɐ̯]. 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 noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45518, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

scheuer is recorded at frequency rank #15,742, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃɔɪ̯ɐ]. Schwur is at rank #29,776, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʃvuːɐ̯].

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 45518, this pair ranks #1,350,298 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of scheuer vs Schwur

Shared letters: chrsu. Private to "scheuer": e. Private to "Schwur": w.

"scheuer" · 7 letters · shape CCCVVVC  ·  "Schwur" · 6 letters · shape CCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • scheuercsheuer · sccheuer · scehuer · scheeur · scheuerr · scheure · schheuer · schueer
  • Schwurcshwur · scchwur · schhwur · schuwr · schwru · schwurr · schwwur · scwhur

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "scheuer" for "Schwur" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "scheuer" is an adjective and "Schwur" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
In ordinary German text, does "scheuer" or "Schwur" show up more?
"scheuer" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,742 in our German list, against #29,776 for "Schwur". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "scheuer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Schwur" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,350,298 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "scheuer" and "Schwur" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schwund vs Schwur". 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 #1,350,298 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