Which to use
“Kamin” is a noun and “kämmen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #12,111
- “Kamin” frequency rank
- #41,301
- “kämmen” frequency rank
- 53412
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Kamin | kämmen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Feuerstelle in Wohnräumen, die zur Heizung und Beleuchtung dient | mithilfe eines Kammes die Haare richten |
Where the eye mixes Kamin and kämmen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses Kamin with kämmen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Kamin is [kaˈmiːn] while kämmen is [ˈkɛmən]. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53412, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Kamin is recorded at frequency rank #12,111, classified as anoun, pronounced [kaˈmiːn]. kämmen is at rank #41,301, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkɛmən].
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 53412, this pair ranks #1,059,026 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Kamin vs kämmen
Shared letters: kmn. Private to "Kamin": ai. Private to "kämmen": eä.
"Kamin" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "kämmen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Kamin ← akmin · kaimn · kaminn · kammin · kamni · kkamin · kmain
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Kamin" for "kämmen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "Kamin" or "kämmen" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Kamin" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "kämmen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,059,026 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Kamin" and "kämmen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Kamenz vs kämmen". 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 #1,059,026 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.