Which to use
“Schmuggel” is a noun and “schmuggeln” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #42,793
- “Schmuggel” frequency rank
- #35,435
- “schmuggeln” frequency rank
- 78228
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Schmuggel | schmuggeln |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | heimlicher Transport zollpflichtiger oder verbotener Waren beziehungsweise von nicht zum Übertritt berechtigten Personen über Grenzen | illegal Ware über die Grenze ein- oder ausführen, ohne Zoll und andere Steuern oder Abgaben zu zahlen |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Schmuggel and schmuggeln apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
Schmuggel and schmuggeln form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “Schmuggel” sits inside “schmuggeln” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 78228, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Schmuggel is recorded at frequency rank #42,793, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃmʊɡl̩]. schmuggeln is at rank #35,435, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃmʊɡl̩n].
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 78228, this pair ranks #242,978 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Schmuggel" and "schmuggeln" be used interchangeably?
Remembering Schmuggel vs schmuggeln
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Schmuggel”; for a verb, it's “schmuggeln”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Schmuggel” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable