Which to use
“schwarz” and “schwarzem” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #842
- “schwarz” frequency rank
- #13,937
- “schwarzem” frequency rank
- 14779
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | schwarz | schwarzem |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Licht nahezu komplett absorbierende Farbe, im RGB-Farbraum mit Werten von Rot, Blau und Grün nahe Null | Dativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs schwarz |
Where the eye mixes schwarz and schwarzem
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. schwarz runs 7 letters (CCCCVCC) against schwarzem's 9 (CCCCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: schwarz vs schwarzem
A purely visual mix-up. schwarz ([ʃvaʁt͡s]) and schwarzem ([ˈʃvaʁt͡sm̩]) 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 extra letter(s) - “schwarz” sits inside “schwarzem”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14779, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
schwarz is recorded at frequency rank #842, classified as anadj, pronounced [ʃvaʁt͡s]. schwarzem is at rank #13,937, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃvaʁt͡sm̩].
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 14779, this pair ranks #1,948,815 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of schwarz vs schwarzem
Shared letters: achrswz. Private to "schwarz": -. Private to "schwarzem": em.
"schwarz" · 7 letters · shape CCCCVCC · "schwarzem" · 9 letters · shape CCCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "schwarz" and "schwarzem" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "schwarz" or "schwarzem"?
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 "schwarz" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schwarzem" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,948,815 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "schwarz" and "schwarzem" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schwarzem vs Schwätzer". 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 #1,948,815 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.