Which to use
“Schwein” is a noun and “schwer” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #5,760
- “Schwein” frequency rank
- #446
- “schwer” frequency rank
- 6206
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Schwein | schwer |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Säugetier und Paarhufer mit kurzen Beinen, verlängerter rüsselartiger Schnauze, Borsten | ein hohes Gewicht habend |
Where the eye mixes Schwein and schwer
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses Schwein with schwer
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Schwein is [ʃvaɪ̯n] while schwer is [ʃveːɐ̯]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 6206, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Schwein is recorded at frequency rank #5,760, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃvaɪ̯n]. schwer is at rank #446, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ʃveːɐ̯].
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 6206, this pair ranks #1,992,382 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Schwein vs schwer
Shared letters: cehsw. Private to "Schwein": in. Private to "schwer": r.
"Schwein" · 7 letters · shape CCCCVVC · "schwer" · 6 letters · shape CCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Schwein" for "schwer" ever safe?
Frequency check: "Schwein" vs "schwer" - which ranks higher?
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 "Schwein" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schwer" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,992,382 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Schwein" and "schwer" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Schwein vs Schwelm". 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 #1,992,382 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.