Which to use
“shin” and “Spion” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #31,269
- “shin” frequency rank
- #18,070
- “Spion” frequency rank
- 49339
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | shin | Spion |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | neben dem Wadenbein einer der beiden, mithin der kräftigere Knochen des Unterschenkels | ein heimlicher, unerkannter Beobachter, der die gegnerische Seite auszukunden hat |
Where the eye mixes shin and Spion
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. shin runs 4 letters (CCVC) against Spion's 5 (CCVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between shin and Spion
A purely visual mix-up. shin ([ʃɪn]) and Spion ([ʃpiˈoːn]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49339, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
shin is recorded at frequency rank #31,269, classified as anoun, pronounced [ʃɪn]. Spion is at rank #18,070, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʃpiˈoːn].
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 49339, this pair ranks #1,215,226 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of shin vs Spion
Shared letters: ins. Private to "shin": h. Private to "Spion": op.
"shin" · 4 letters · shape CCVC · "Spion" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "shin" for "Spion" ever safe?
Frequency check: "shin" vs "Spion" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "shin" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Spion" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,215,226 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "shin" and "Spion" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "shin vs sil". 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 #1,215,226 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.