Which to use
“schlimmen” is an adjective and “schwimmen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #13,009
- “schlimmen” frequency rank
- #3,399
- “schwimmen” frequency rank
- 16408
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | schlimmen | schwimmen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Adjektivs schlimm | sich im Wasser aus eigener Kraft (durch Bewegung der Extremitäten) fortbewegen |
Where the eye mixes schlimmen and schwimmen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: schlimmen vs schwimmen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: schlimmen is [ˈʃlɪmən] while schwimmen is [ˈʃvɪmən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - l in “schlimmen” becomes w in “schwimmen”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16408, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
schlimmen is recorded at frequency rank #13,009, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃlɪmən]. schwimmen is at rank #3,399, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃvɪmən].
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 16408, this pair ranks #1,936,101 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of schlimmen vs schwimmen
Shared letters: cehimns. Private to "schlimmen": l. Private to "schwimmen": w.
"schlimmen" · 9 letters · shape CCCCVCCVC · "schwimmen" · 9 letters · shape CCCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "schlimmen" and "schwimmen" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "schlimmen" or "schwimmen" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "schlimmen" and "schwimmen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "schlimmen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schwimmen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,936,101 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "schlimmen" and "schwimmen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schlemmer vs schlimmen". 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 #1,936,101 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.