alldemvsaltemWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: alldem is a pronoun, altem is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“alldem” is a pronoun and “altem” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#45,105
“alldem” frequency rank
#16,081
“altem” frequency rank
61186
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature alldem altem
Definition Gesamtheit eines bestimmten Sachverhalts Dativ Singular Maskulinum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs alt

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
alldem
5 ch
altem

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: alldem is [alˈdeːm] while altem is [ˈaltəm]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (pronoun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 61186, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

alldem is recorded at frequency rank #45,105, classified as apron, pronounced [alˈdeːm]. altem is at rank #16,081, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈaltəm].

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 61186, this pair ranks #759,139 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of alldem vs altem

Shared letters: aelm. Private to "alldem": d. Private to "altem": t.

"alldem" · 6 letters · shape VCCCVC  ·  "altem" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • alldemaldem · aldlem · allddem · alldemm · alldme · alledm · laldem
  • altemaletm · alltem · altemm · altme · alttem · atlem · latem

Frequency comparison

alldem#45,105
altem#16,081

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "alldem" and "altem" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "alldem" is a pronoun and "altem" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "alldem" or "altem"?
"altem" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,081 in our German list, against #45,105 for "alldem". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering alldem vs altem

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a pronoun, it's “alldem”; for an adjective, it's “altem”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “alldem” 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