Which to use
“schlecht” is an adjective and “schreckt” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #649
- “schlecht” frequency rank
- #23,304
- “schreckt” frequency rank
- 23953
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | schlecht | schreckt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nicht den Anforderungen oder Erwartungen entsprechend, weil mit Mängeln behaftet | 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs schrecken |
Where the eye mixes schlecht and schreckt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between schlecht and schreckt
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: schlecht is [ʃlɛçt] while schreckt is [ʃʁɛkt]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23953, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
schlecht is recorded at frequency rank #649, classified as anadj, pronounced [ʃlɛçt]. schreckt is at rank #23,304, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃʁɛkt].
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 23953, this pair ranks #1,854,315 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of schlecht vs schreckt
Shared letters: cehst. Private to "schlecht": l. Private to "schreckt": kr.
"schlecht" · 8 letters · shape CCCCVCCC · "schreckt" · 8 letters · shape CCCCVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "schlecht" and "schreckt" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "schlecht" or "schreckt"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "schlecht" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schreckt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,854,315 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "schlecht" and "schreckt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schreckt vs schwenkt". 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 #1,854,315 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.