Which to use
“gemein” and “gemeine” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #5,262
- “gemein” frequency rank
- #12,718
- “gemeine” frequency rank
- 17980
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gemein | gemeine |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | eine Eigenschaft habend, die mehreren gemeinsam ist | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs gemein |
Where the eye mixes gemein and gemeine
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: gemein vs gemeine
A purely visual mix-up. gemein ([ɡəˈmaɪ̯n]) and gemeine ([ɡəˈmaɪ̯nə]) 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 extra letter(s) - “gemein” sits inside “gemeine”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17980, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gemein is recorded at frequency rank #5,262, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈmaɪ̯n]. gemeine is at rank #12,718, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈmaɪ̯nə].
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 17980, this pair ranks #1,922,499 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of gemein vs gemeine
Shared letters: egimn. Private to "gemein": -. Private to "gemeine": -.
"gemein" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC · "gemeine" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "gemein" and "gemeine" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "gemein" or "gemeine"?
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 "gemein" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gemeine" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,922,499 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gemein" and "gemeine" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gemeine vs gemeines". 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 #1,922,499 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.