Which to use
“dunkel” and “dunklem” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,030
- “dunkel” frequency rank
- #30,516
- “dunklem” frequency rank
- 33546
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | dunkel | dunklem |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | ohne oder mit wenig Licht, lichtlos | Dativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs dunkel |
Where the eye mixes dunkel and dunklem
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses dunkel with dunklem
A purely visual mix-up. dunkel ([ˈdʊŋkl̩]) and dunklem ([ˈdʊŋkləm]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33546, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
dunkel is recorded at frequency rank #3,030, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈdʊŋkl̩]. dunklem is at rank #30,516, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈdʊŋkləm].
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 33546, this pair ranks #1,683,602 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of dunkel vs dunklem
Shared letters: deklnu. Private to "dunkel": -. Private to "dunklem": m.
"dunkel" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "dunklem" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "dunkel" and "dunklem" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "dunkel" or "dunklem"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "dunkel" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "dunklem" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,683,602 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "dunkel" and "dunklem" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "dunklem vs dunklere". 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 #1,683,602 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.