schürenvsspürenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#22,135
“schüren” frequency rank
#3,400
“spüren” frequency rank
25535
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature schüren spüren
Definition Feuer durch Herumstochern anfachen etwas körperlich, mit dem Tastsinn wahrnehmen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set schüren and spüren apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
schüren
6 ch
spüren

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. schüren ([ˈʃyːʁən]) and spüren ([ˈʃpyːʁən]) 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 25535, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

schüren is recorded at frequency rank #22,135, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈʃyːʁən]. spüren is at rank #3,400, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈʃpyːʁən].

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 25535, this pair ranks #1,831,796 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of schüren vs spüren

Shared letters: enrsü. Private to "schüren": ch. Private to "spüren": p.

"schüren" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCVC  ·  "spüren" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC

Frequency comparison

schüren#22,135
spüren#3,400

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "schüren" and "spüren" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃyːʁən] versus [ˈʃpyːʁən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "schüren" or "spüren"?
"spüren" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,400 in our German list, against #22,135 for "schüren". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering schüren vs spüren

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “schüren” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list