schwächtvsschwanktWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#25,758
“schwächt” frequency rank
#16,277
“schwankt” frequency rank
42035
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature schwächt schwankt
Definition 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs schwächen 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs schwanken

Where the eye mixes schwächt and schwankt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. schwächt and schwankt follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCCCVCCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

8 ch
schwächt
8 ch
schwankt

Why the eye confuses schwächt with schwankt

A purely visual mix-up. schwächt ([ʃvɛçt]) and schwankt ([ʃvaŋkt]) 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 42035, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

schwächt is recorded at frequency rank #25,758, classified as averb, pronounced [ʃvɛçt]. schwankt is at rank #16,277, tagged as averb, pronounced [ʃvaŋkt].

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 42035, this pair ranks #1,461,575 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of schwächt vs schwankt

Shared letters: chstw. Private to "schwächt": ä. Private to "schwankt": akn.

"schwächt" · 8 letters · shape CCCCVCCC  ·  "schwankt" · 8 letters · shape CCCCVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • schwanktcshwankt · scchwankt · schawnkt · schhwankt · schwaknt · schwankkt · schwanktt · schwannkt

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "schwächt" and "schwankt" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ʃvɛçt] versus [ʃvaŋkt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "schwächt" vs "schwankt" - which ranks higher?
"schwankt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,277 in our German list, against #25,758 for "schwächt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "schwächt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "schwankt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,461,575 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "schwächt" and "schwankt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schwachem vs schwächt". 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 #1,461,575 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