Which to use
“Schurke” and “Schütze” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #49,237
- “Schurke” frequency rank
- #9,629
- “Schütze” frequency rank
- 58866
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Schurke | Schütze |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | jemand, der moralisch verwerflich handelt | jemand, dessen Tätigkeit das Schießen ist |
Where the eye mixes Schurke and Schütze
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. Schurke and Schütze follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCCVCCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses Schurke with Schütze
A purely visual mix-up. Schurke ([ˈʃʊʁkə]) and Schütze ([ˈʃʏt͡sə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 58866, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Schurke is recorded at frequency rank #49,237, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃʊʁkə]. Schütze is at rank #9,629, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃʏt͡sə].
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 58866, this pair ranks #846,328 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Schurke vs Schütze
Shared letters: cehs. Private to "Schurke": kru. Private to "Schütze": tzü.
"Schurke" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCCV · "Schütze" · 7 letters · shape CCCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- Schurke ← cshurke · scchurke · schhurke · schruke · schukre · schurek · schurkke · schurrke
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Schurke" and "Schütze" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "Schurke" or "Schütze" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "Schurke" and "Schütze" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Schurke" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Schütze" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #846,328 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Schurke" and "Schütze" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schlucke vs Schurke". 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 #846,328 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.