Which to use
“schlich” is a verb and “schwach” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #28,844
- “schlich” frequency rank
- #3,073
- “schwach” frequency rank
- 31917
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | schlich | schwach |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs schleichen | ohne Kraft |
Where the eye mixes schlich and schwach
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between schlich and schwach
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: schlich is [ʃlɪç] while schwach is [ʃvax]. 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 (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31917, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
schlich is recorded at frequency rank #28,844, classified as averb, pronounced [ʃlɪç]. schwach is at rank #3,073, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ʃvax].
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 31917, this pair ranks #1,718,437 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of schlich vs schwach
Shared letters: chs. Private to "schlich": il. Private to "schwach": aw.
"schlich" · 7 letters · shape CCCCVCC · "schwach" · 7 letters · shape CCCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "schlich" for "schwach" ever safe?
Which is more common, "schlich" or "schwach"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "schlich" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schwach" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,718,437 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "schlich" and "schwach" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schlich vs Schlick". 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 #1,718,437 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.