SchwagervsSchwangereWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#12,166
“Schwager” frequency rank
#10,933
“Schwangere” frequency rank
23099
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Schwager Schwangere
Definition Bruder des Ehepartners Frau, die schwanger ist, also ein Kind erwartet

Where the eye mixes Schwager and Schwangere

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. Schwager runs 8 letters (CCCCVCVC) against Schwangere's 10 (CCCCVCCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
Schwager
10 ch
Schwangere

Look-alike desk: Schwager vs Schwangere

A purely visual mix-up. Schwager ([ˈʃvaːɡɐ]) and Schwangere ([ˈʃvaŋəʁə]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23099, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Schwager is recorded at frequency rank #12,166, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃvaːɡɐ]. Schwangere is at rank #10,933, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃvaŋəʁə].

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 23099, this pair ranks #1,865,802 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Schwager vs Schwangere

Shared letters: aceghrsw. Private to "Schwager": -. Private to "Schwangere": n.

"Schwager" · 8 letters · shape CCCCVCVC  ·  "Schwangere" · 10 letters · shape CCCCVCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Schwagercshwager · scchwager · schawger · schhwager · schwaegr · schwagerr · schwagger · schwagre
  • Schwangerecshwangere · scchwangere · schawngere · schhwangere · schwagnere · schwanegre · schwangeer · schwangerre

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "Schwager" for "Schwangere" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈʃvaːɡɐ] versus [ˈʃvaŋəʁə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Schwager" or "Schwangere"?
"Schwangere" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,933 in our German list, against #12,166 for "Schwager". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "Schwager" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Schwangere" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,865,802 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "Schwager" and "Schwangere" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schläfer vs Schwager". 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 #1,865,802 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