Which to use
“weichen” and “wischen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,396
- “weichen” frequency rank
- #18,766
- “wischen” frequency rank
- 23162
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | weichen | wischen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sich entfernen, weggehen/Platz machen | etwas, zum Beispiel Schmutz von einer Oberfläche, entfernen, eventuell mit einem Lappen |
Where the eye mixes weichen and wischen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: weichen vs wischen
A purely visual mix-up. weichen ([ˈvaɪ̯çn̩]) and wischen ([ˈvɪʃn̩]) 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 23162, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
weichen is recorded at frequency rank #4,396, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈvaɪ̯çn̩]. wischen is at rank #18,766, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈvɪʃn̩].
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 23162, this pair ranks #1,864,984 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of weichen vs wischen
Shared letters: cehinw. Private to "weichen": -. Private to "wischen": s.
"weichen" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVC · "wischen" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "weichen" for "wischen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "weichen" vs "wischen" - which ranks higher?
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 "weichen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "wischen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,864,984 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "weichen" and "wischen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Weilchen vs wischen". 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 #1,864,984 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.