Which to use
“schwarz” and “schwere” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #842
- “schwarz” frequency rank
- #1,988
- “schwere” frequency rank
- 2830
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | schwarz | schwere |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Licht nahezu komplett absorbierende Farbe, im RGB-Farbraum mit Werten von Rot, Blau und Grün nahe Null | Nominativ Singular Femininum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs schwer |
Where the eye mixes schwarz and schwere
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between schwarz and schwere
A purely visual mix-up. schwarz ([ʃvaʁt͡s]) and schwere ([ˈʃveːʁə]) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2830, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
schwarz is recorded at frequency rank #842, classified as anadj, pronounced [ʃvaʁt͡s]. schwere is at rank #1,988, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃveːʁə].
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 2830, this pair ranks #2,001,491 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of schwarz vs schwere
Shared letters: chrsw. Private to "schwarz": az. Private to "schwere": e.
"schwarz" · 7 letters · shape CCCCVCC · "schwere" · 7 letters · shape CCCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "schwarz" and "schwere" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "schwarz" or "schwere"?
What to do next
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 "schwere" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #2,001,491 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "schwarz" and "schwere" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schmiere vs schwere". 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 #2,001,491 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.