geheimvsgehemmtWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#8,373
“geheim” frequency rank
#36,350
“gehemmt” frequency rank
44723
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature geheim gehemmt
Definition nicht für jedermann erkennbar sich in einem seelischen Zustand großer Zurückhaltung befinden; voller Hemmungen sein; verkrampft und angespannt sein; nicht locker sein

Where the eye mixes geheim and gehemmt

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. geheim runs 6 letters (CVCVVC) against gehemmt's 7 (CVCVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
geheim
7 ch
gehemmt

Look-alike desk: geheim vs gehemmt

A purely visual mix-up. geheim ([ɡəˈhaɪ̯m]) and gehemmt ([ɡəˈhɛmt]) 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 44723, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

geheim is recorded at frequency rank #8,373, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈhaɪ̯m]. gehemmt is at rank #36,350, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈhɛmt].

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 44723, this pair ranks #1,376,827 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of geheim vs gehemmt

Shared letters: eghm. Private to "geheim": i. Private to "gehemmt": t.

"geheim" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC  ·  "gehemmt" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • geheim ← egheim · geehim · geheimm · gehemi · gehheim · gehiem · ggeheim · gheeim
  • gehemmt ← eghemmt · geehmmt · gehemmtt · gehemt · gehemtm · gehhemmt · gehmemt · ggehemmt

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "geheim" for "gehemmt" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ɡəˈhaɪ̯m] versus [ɡəˈhɛmt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "geheim" or "gehemmt"?
"geheim" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,373 in our German list, against #36,350 for "gehemmt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "geheim" and "gehemmt" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "geheim" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "gehemmt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,376,827 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "geheim" and "gehemmt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "geheizt vs gehemmt". 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 #1,376,827 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