SchiffevsSchildeTell them apart

Which to use

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

#3,770
“Schiffe” frequency rank
#23,693
“Schilde” frequency rank
27463
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Schiffe Schilde
Definition flüssiges Ausscheidungsprodukt der Harnblase Variante für den Dativ Singular des Substantivs Schild

Where the eye mixes Schiffe and Schilde

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

7 ch
Schiffe
7 ch
Schilde

Look-alike desk: Schiffe vs Schilde

A purely visual mix-up. Schiffe ([ˈʃɪfə]) and Schilde ([ˈʃɪldə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27463, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Schiffe is recorded at frequency rank #3,770, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃɪfə]. Schilde is at rank #23,693, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃɪldə].

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 27463, this pair ranks #1,801,414 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Schiffe vs Schilde

Shared letters: cehis. Private to "Schiffe": f. Private to "Schilde": dl.

"Schiffe" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCCV  ·  "Schilde" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Schiffecshiffe · scchiffe · schfife · schhiffe · schife · schifef · scihffe · shciffe
  • Schildecshilde · scchilde · schhilde · schidle · schildde · schiled · schillde · schlide

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Schiffe" for "Schilde" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃɪfə] versus [ˈʃɪldə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "Schiffe" vs "Schilde" - which ranks higher?
"Schiffe" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,770 in our German list, against #23,693 for "Schilde". 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 "Schiffe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Schilde" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,801,414 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Schiffe" and "Schilde" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schilde vs schrille". 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 #1,801,414 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