Which to use
“kehr” is a verb and “kühl” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #36,440
- “kehr” frequency rank
- #8,096
- “kühl” frequency rank
- 44536
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | kehr | kühl |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs kehren | von geringer, meist gefühlter Temperatur |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set kehr and kühl apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: kehr is [keːɐ̯] while kühl is [kyːl]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44536, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
kehr is recorded at frequency rank #36,440, classified as averb, pronounced [keːɐ̯]. kühl is at rank #8,096, tagged as anadj, pronounced [kyːl].
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 44536, this pair ranks #1,383,041 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of kehr vs kühl
Shared letters: hk. Private to "kehr": er. Private to "kühl": lü.
"kehr" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "kühl" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- kehr ← ekhr · kehhr · kehrr · kerh · kher · kkehr
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "kehr" and "kühl" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "kehr" or "kühl"?
Remembering kehr vs kühl
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “kehr”; for an adjective, it's “kühl”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “kehr” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable