SchichtenvsschicktenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Schichten is a noun, schickten is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Schichten” is a noun and “schickten” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#5,758
“Schichten” frequency rank
#19,708
“schickten” frequency rank
25466
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Schichten schickten
Definition Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Schicht 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs schicken

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Schichten and schickten apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
Schichten
9 ch
schickten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Schichten is [ˈʃɪçtn̩] while schickten is [ˈʃɪktn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - h in “Schichten” becomes k in “schickten”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25466, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Schichten is recorded at frequency rank #5,758, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃɪçtn̩]. schickten is at rank #19,708, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃɪktn̩].

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 25466, this pair ranks #1,832,838 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Schichten vs schickten

Shared letters: cehinst. Private to "Schichten": -. Private to "schickten": k.

"Schichten" · 9 letters · shape CCCVCCCVC  ·  "schickten" · 9 letters · shape CCCVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Schichtencshichten · scchichten · schcihten · schhichten · schicchten · schichetn · schichhten · schichtenn
  • schicktencshickten · scchickten · schcikten · schhickten · schicckten · schicketn · schickkten · schicktenn

Frequency comparison

Schichten#5,758
schickten#19,708

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Schichten" and "schickten" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Schichten" is a noun and "schickten" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Schichten" or "schickten"?
"Schichten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,758 in our German list, against #19,708 for "schickten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Schichten vs schickten

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Schichten”; for a verb, it's “schickten”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Schichten” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list