Which to use
“Schlecker” is a noun and “schmecken” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #35,433
- “Schlecker” frequency rank
- #5,114
- “schmecken” frequency rank
- 40547
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Schlecker | schmecken |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemand, der gerne Süßigkeiten isst, gerne nascht | den Geschmackssinn anwenden, etwas mit dem Geschmackssinn prüfen, wahrnehmen |
Where the eye mixes Schlecker and schmecken
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. Schlecker and schmecken follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCCCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Visual trap between Schlecker and schmecken
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Schlecker is [ˈʃlɛkɐ] while schmecken is [ˈʃmɛkn̩]. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40547, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Schlecker is recorded at frequency rank #35,433, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃlɛkɐ]. schmecken is at rank #5,114, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃmɛkn̩].
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 40547, this pair ranks #1,505,296 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Schlecker vs schmecken
Shared letters: cehks. Private to "Schlecker": lr. Private to "schmecken": mn.
"Schlecker" · 9 letters · shape CCCCVCCVC · "schmecken" · 9 letters · shape CCCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Schlecker" for "schmecken" ever safe?
Frequency check: "Schlecker" vs "schmecken" - 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 "Schlecker" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schmecken" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,505,296 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Schlecker" and "schmecken" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schlecker vs schlucke". 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 #1,505,296 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.