gelähmtvsgemähtWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: gelähmt is a adjective, gemäht is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“gelähmt” is an adjective and “gemäht” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#21,615
“gelähmt” frequency rank
#47,435
“gemäht” frequency rank
69050
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature gelähmt gemäht
Definition an einer Lähmung leidend; unfähig, bestimmte Muskeln zu bewegen Partizip Perfekt des Verbs mähen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set gelähmt and gemäht apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
gelähmt
6 ch
gemäht

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: gelähmt is [ɡəˈlɛːmt] while gemäht is [ɡəˈmɛːt]. 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 verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 69050, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

gelähmt is recorded at frequency rank #21,615, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈlɛːmt]. gemäht is at rank #47,435, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈmɛːt].

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 69050, this pair ranks #488,617 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of gelähmt vs gemäht

Shared letters: eghmtä. Private to "gelähmt": l. Private to "gemäht": -.

"gelähmt" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCC  ·  "gemäht" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC

Frequency comparison

gelähmt#21,615
gemäht#47,435

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "gelähmt" and "gemäht" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "gelähmt" is an adjective and "gemäht" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "gelähmt" or "gemäht"?
"gelähmt" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,615 in our German list, against #47,435 for "gemäht". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering gelähmt vs gemäht

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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