Which to use
“kühle” is a verb and “kühnen” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #13,191
- “kühle” frequency rank
- #38,244
- “kühnen” frequency rank
- 51435
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | kühle | kühnen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs kühlen | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs kühn |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set kühle and kühnen apart are highlighted. They share 4 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: kühle is [ˈkyːlə] while kühnen is [ˈkyːnən]. 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 (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51435, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
kühle is recorded at frequency rank #13,191, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkyːlə]. kühnen is at rank #38,244, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈkyːnən].
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 51435, this pair ranks #1,135,661 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of kühle vs kühnen
Shared letters: ehkü. Private to "kühle": l. Private to "kühnen": n.
"kühle" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "kühnen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "kühle" and "kühnen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "kühle" or "kühnen"?
Remembering kühle vs kühnen
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “kühle”; for an adjective, it's “kühnen”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “kühle” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable