wichvsWichseWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: wich is a verb, Wichse is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“wich” is a verb and “Wichse” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#19,451
“wich” frequency rank
#45,698
“Wichse” frequency rank
65149
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature wich Wichse
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs weichen Paste, Putzmittel für Schuhe oder auch Parkett, die nach dem Auftragen auf Glanz poliert wird

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set wich and Wichse apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
wich
6 ch
Wichse

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: wich is [vɪç] while Wichse is [ˈvɪksə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “wich” sits inside “Wichse”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 65149, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

wich is recorded at frequency rank #19,451, classified as averb, pronounced [vɪç]. Wichse is at rank #45,698, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈvɪksə].

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 65149, this pair ranks #616,865 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of wich vs Wichse

Shared letters: chiw. Private to "wich": -. Private to "Wichse": es.

"wich" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "Wichse" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • wichiwch · wcih · wicch · wichh · wihc · wwich
  • Wichseiwchse · wcihse · wicchse · wiches · wichhse · wichsse · wicshe · wihcse

Frequency comparison

wich#19,451
Wichse#45,698

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "wich" and "Wichse" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "wich" is a verb and "Wichse" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "wich" or "Wichse"?
"wich" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,451 in our German list, against #45,698 for "Wichse". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering wich vs Wichse

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “wich”; for a noun, it's “Wichse”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “wich” 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