Which to use
“Schlaf” is a noun and “schlau” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,514
- “Schlaf” frequency rank
- #5,301
- “schlau” frequency rank
- 7815
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Schlaf | schlau |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Zustand der Ruhe eines Lebewesens (meistens höhere Tiere und Menschen, selten auch Pflanzen) | um Wege wissend, seine Ziele (dennoch) zu erreichen |
Where the eye mixes Schlaf and schlau
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Schlaf vs schlau
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Schlaf is [ʃlaːf] while schlau is [ʃlaʊ̯]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - f in “Schlaf” becomes u in “schlau”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 7815, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Schlaf is recorded at frequency rank #2,514, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃlaːf]. schlau is at rank #5,301, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ʃlaʊ̯].
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 7815, this pair ranks #1,986,797 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Schlaf vs schlau
Shared letters: achls. Private to "Schlaf": f. Private to "schlau": u.
"Schlaf" · 6 letters · shape CCCCVC · "schlau" · 6 letters · shape CCCCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Schlaf" for "schlau" ever safe?
Frequency check: "Schlaf" vs "schlau" - which ranks higher?
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 "Schlaf" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schlau" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,986,797 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Schlaf" and "schlau" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schlau vs scholar". 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 #1,986,797 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.