SchwindelvsschwindeligWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Schwindel is a noun, schwindelig is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Schwindel” is a noun and “schwindelig” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#14,405
“Schwindel” frequency rank
#29,775
“schwindelig” frequency rank
44180
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Schwindel schwindelig
Definition Beeinträchtigung des Gleichgewichtssinns; Gefühl zu taumeln, wanken den Schwindel habend, mit dem Schwindel behaftet

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Schwindel and schwindelig apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
Schwindel
11 ch
schwindelig

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Schwindel is [ˈʃvɪndl̩] while schwindelig is [ˈʃvɪndəlɪç]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “Schwindel” sits inside “schwindelig”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44180, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Schwindel is recorded at frequency rank #14,405, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈʃvɪndl̩]. schwindelig is at rank #29,775, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃvɪndəlɪç].

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 44180, this pair ranks #1,394,408 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Schwindel vs schwindelig

Shared letters: cdehilnsw. Private to "Schwindel": -. Private to "schwindelig": g.

"Schwindel" · 9 letters · shape CCCCVCCVC  ·  "schwindelig" · 11 letters · shape CCCCVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Schwindelcshwindel · scchwindel · schhwindel · schiwndel · schwidnel · schwinddel · schwindell · schwindle
  • schwindeligcshwindelig · scchwindelig · schhwindelig · schiwndelig · schwidnelig · schwinddelig · schwindeilg · schwindelgi

Frequency comparison

Schwindel#14,405
schwindelig#29,775

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Schwindel" and "schwindelig" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Schwindel" is a noun and "schwindelig" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Schwindel" or "schwindelig"?
"Schwindel" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #14,405 in our German list, against #29,775 for "schwindelig". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Schwindel vs schwindelig

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Schwindel”; for an adjective, it's “schwindelig”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Schwindel” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list