schiedenvsschliefenWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

“schieden” and “schliefen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#31,773
“schieden” frequency rank
#29,323
“schliefen” frequency rank
61096
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature schieden schliefen
Definition 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs scheiden schlüpfen

Where the eye mixes schieden and schliefen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. schieden runs 8 letters (CCCVVCVC) against schliefen's 9 (CCCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
schieden
9 ch
schliefen

Look-alike desk: schieden vs schliefen

A purely visual mix-up. schieden ([ˈʃiːdn̩]) and schliefen ([ˈʃliːfn̩]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 61096, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

schieden is recorded at frequency rank #31,773, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃiːdn̩]. schliefen is at rank #29,323, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃliːfn̩].

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 61096, this pair ranks #762,441 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of schieden vs schliefen

Shared letters: cehins. Private to "schieden": d. Private to "schliefen": fl.

"schieden" · 8 letters · shape CCCVVCVC  ·  "schliefen" · 9 letters · shape CCCCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • schieden ← cshieden · scchieden · schhieden · schideen · schiedden · schiedenn · schiedne · schieedn
  • schliefen ← cshliefen · scchliefen · schhliefen · schilefen · schlieefn · schliefenn · schlieffen · schliefne

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "schieden" and "schliefen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃiːdn̩] versus [ˈʃliːfn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "schieden" vs "schliefen" - which ranks higher?
"schliefen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #29,323 in our German list, against #31,773 for "schieden". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "schieden" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "schliefen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #762,441 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "schieden" and "schliefen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schieden vs schlieren". 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 #762,441 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