SchlundvsSchuldWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“Schlund” and “Schuld” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#41,450
“Schlund” frequency rank
#999
“Schuld” frequency rank
42449
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Schlund Schuld
Definition Übergang von Mundhöhle zur Speiseröhre Verbindlichkeit, Pflicht, etwas zu tun oder zu unterlassen

Where the eye mixes Schlund and Schuld

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

7 ch
Schlund
6 ch
Schuld

Why the eye confuses Schlund with Schuld

A purely visual mix-up. Schlund ([ʃlʊnt]) and Schuld ([ʃʊlt]) 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 42449, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Schlund is recorded at frequency rank #41,450, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃlʊnt]. Schuld is at rank #999, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʃʊlt].

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 42449, this pair ranks #1,448,948 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Schlund vs Schuld

Shared letters: cdhlsu. Private to "Schlund": n. Private to "Schuld": -.

"Schlund" · 7 letters · shape CCCCVCC  ·  "Schuld" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Schlundcshlund · scchlund · schhlund · schllund · schlnud · schludn · schlundd · schlunnd
  • Schuldcshuld · scchuld · schhuld · schlud · schudl · schuldd · schulld · scuhld

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Schlund" and "Schuld" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ʃlʊnt] versus [ʃʊlt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Schlund" or "Schuld"?
"Schuld" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #999 in our German list, against #41,450 for "Schlund". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

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 "Schlund" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Schuld" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,448,948 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Schlund" and "Schuld" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schlund vs Schwund". 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 #1,448,948 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list