schwer

\ʃveːɐ̯\

/\ʃveːɐ̯\/ adj

The verdict

“schwer” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
6
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Lourd, pesant.

Corpus desk

Index FR-schwer · schwer · French

schwer · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "S" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for schwer
PropertyValue
Headwordschwer
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdjective
IPA\ʃveːɐ̯\
Letters6
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « schwer » en français

schwerreste hors des 100.000 mots français les plus fréquents, dans la longue queue du vocabulaire technique, archaïque ou rare, là où le doute d'orthographe frappe.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

schwer is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed \ʃveːɐ̯\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 16 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for schwer in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct French form is schwer, spelled S-C-H-W-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Lourd, pesant.
  2. 2
    Difficile, pénible.
  3. 3
    Grave, violent (qualifie des choses négatives comme maladies, crises, désastres etc.)
  4. 4
    Capiteux, lourd (caractérise un vin).
  5. 5
    Consistant, copieux, rustique.
  6. 6
    Cruel, dur en parlant d'un destin.
  7. 7
    Sévère en parlant d'une peine, d'un jugement, d'un verdict.
  8. 8
    indique le poids, précédé par le poids exprimé en chiffres.
  9. 9
    Lourd, qui a un effet important.
  10. 10
    Lourd et puissant.
  11. 11
    Lourd, à haute densité et à bonne qualité.
  12. 12
    Lourdaud.
  13. 13
    Triste, désolé.
  14. 14
    Plein de difficultés.
  15. 15
    Sérieux, dangereux.
  16. 16
    Grave, considérable.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how schwer appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Wenn Detlef schlafen will, zieht er die schweren schwarzen Vorhänge vor, so dass kein Tageslicht ins Schlafzimmer dringen kann.
  2. Die Baustelle zum sechsspurigen Ausbau der Autobahn feiert heute ihr 20-jähriges Jubiläum. (...) Es ist ein großes Fest, das die Organisatoren für den Abend geplant haben: Nach einer Rede von Verkehrsminister Volker Wissing soll ein Festumzug mit schwerem Baustellengerät über die nach wie vor unfertige Fahrspur stattfinden, bevor ein Feuerwerk die Feierli…

Synonyms

Antonyms

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "schwer"?
"schwer" is spelled S-C-H-W-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is \ʃveːɐ̯\.
What does "schwer" mean?
As an adjective, "schwer" means: Lourd, pesant.
How do you pronounce "schwer"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "schwer" is \ʃveːɐ̯\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "schwer" come from?
"schwer" is a French word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list