SchiffvsSchiffesConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#1,819
“Schiff” frequency rank
#12,580
“Schiffes” frequency rank
14399
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Schiff Schiffes
Definition großes Wasserfahrzeug (in der Regel mit über 10 m Rumpflänge, sonst ist es ein Boot) Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Schiff

Where the eye mixes Schiff and Schiffes

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

6 ch
Schiff
8 ch
Schiffes

Look-alike desk: Schiff vs Schiffes

A purely visual mix-up. Schiff ([ʃɪf]) and Schiffes ([ˈʃɪfəs]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “Schiff” sits inside “Schiffes”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14399, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Schiff is recorded at frequency rank #1,819, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃɪf]. Schiffes is at rank #12,580, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃɪfəs].

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 14399, this pair ranks #1,951,469 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Schiff vs Schiffes

Shared letters: cfhis. Private to "Schiff": -. Private to "Schiffes": e.

"Schiff" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCC  ·  "Schiffes" · 8 letters · shape CCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Schiffcshiff · scchiff · schfif · schhiff · schif · scihff · shciff · sschiff
  • Schiffescshiffes · scchiffes · schfifes · schhiffes · schifefs · schifes · schiffess · schiffse

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "Schiff" and "Schiffes" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ʃɪf] versus [ˈʃɪfəs]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Schiff" vs "Schiffes" - which ranks higher?
"Schiff" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,819 in our German list, against #12,580 for "Schiffes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Schiff" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Schiffes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,951,469 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Schiff" and "Schiffes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schiffes vs Schöffen". 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 #1,951,469 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