eilvsemiWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

“eil” and “emi” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#35,151
“eil” frequency rank
#38,706
“emi” frequency rank
73857
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature eil emi
Definition 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs eilen mögen, Lust haben, im Begriff sein, geeignet sein (zu)

Letter map: eil vs emi

Shared letters muted; letters that set eil and emi apart highlighted. Shared run: 2. eil (VVC) and emi (VCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

3 ch
eil
3 ch
emi

Spelling & dictionary notes on eil vs emi

eil and emi are indexed as a confusable German pair. We have no recorded pronunciation or part of speech for both members, so the spelling overlap is what we can show you: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 73857, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

eil is recorded at frequency rank #35,151, classified as averb, pronounced [aɪ̯l]. emi is at rank #38,706, tagged as averb.

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 73857, this pair ranks #349,057 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of eil vs emi

Shared letters: ei. Private to "eil": l. Private to "emi": m.

"eil" · 3 letters · shape VVC  ·  "emi" · 3 letters · shape VCV

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "eil" and "emi" be used interchangeably?
No. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, but the dictionary glosses above give them different meanings, so swapping one for the other changes what the sentence says.
Frequency check: "eil" vs "emi" - which ranks higher?
"eil" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #35,151 in our German list, against #38,706 for "emi". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Pair "eil" vs "emi" is on the table, pick a follow-up below.

  • Full dictionary entry for "eil" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "emi" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #349,057 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "eil" and "emi" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "emi vs eo". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #349,057 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list