Which to use
“schleichen” and “schmeicheln” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,763
- “schleichen” frequency rank
- #48,456
- “schmeicheln” frequency rank
- 70219
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | schleichen | schmeicheln |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | lautlos gehen | versuchen, jemandem zu gefallen oder jemanden zu beeinflussen, indem man Dinge sagt, die der Andere gern hört, die aber nicht unbedingt der eigenen Meinung entsprechen. |
Where the eye mixes schleichen and schmeicheln
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. schleichen runs 10 letters (CCCCVVCCVC) against schmeicheln's 11 (CCCCVVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses schleichen with schmeicheln
A purely visual mix-up. schleichen ([ˈʃlaɪ̯çn̩]) and schmeicheln ([ˈʃmaɪ̯çl̩n]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 70219, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
schleichen is recorded at frequency rank #21,763, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃlaɪ̯çn̩]. schmeicheln is at rank #48,456, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃmaɪ̯çl̩n].
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 70219, this pair ranks #452,920 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of schleichen vs schmeicheln
Shared letters: cehilns. Private to "schleichen": -. Private to "schmeicheln": m.
"schleichen" · 10 letters · shape CCCCVVCCVC · "schmeicheln" · 11 letters · shape CCCCVVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- schleichen ← cshleichen · scchleichen · schelichen · schhleichen · schlecihen · schleicchen · schleicehn · schleichenn
- schmeicheln ← cshmeicheln · scchmeicheln · schemicheln · schhmeicheln · schmeciheln · schmeiccheln · schmeicehln · schmeichelln
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "schleichen" for "schmeicheln" ever safe?
Which is more common, "schleichen" or "schmeicheln"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "schleichen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schmeicheln" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #452,920 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "schleichen" and "schmeicheln" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schleichen vs schleichende". 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 #452,920 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.