altemvsAtemWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: altem is a adjective, Atem is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

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

#16,081
“altem” frequency rank
#6,150
“Atem” frequency rank
22231
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature altem Atem
Definition Dativ Singular Maskulinum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs alt der aus den Lungen abgegebene Luftstrom, hauptsächlich Stickstoff, Sauerstoff, Kohlendioxid und Wasserdampf

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
altem
4 ch
Atem

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: altem is [ˈaltəm] while Atem is [ˈaːtəm]. 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 (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22231, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

altem is recorded at frequency rank #16,081, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈaltəm]. Atem is at rank #6,150, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈaːtəm].

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 22231, this pair ranks #1,876,714 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of altem vs Atem

Shared letters: aemt. Private to "altem": l. Private to "Atem": -.

"altem" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC  ·  "Atem" · 4 letters · shape VCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • altemaletm · alltem · altemm · altme · alttem · atlem · latem
  • Atemaetm · atemm · attem

Frequency comparison

altem#16,081
Atem#6,150

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "altem" and "Atem" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "altem" is an adjective and "Atem" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "altem" or "Atem"?
"Atem" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,150 in our German list, against #16,081 for "altem". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering altem vs Atem

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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