Which to use
“lame” and “LaTeX” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #49,857
- “lame” frequency rank
- #14,862
- “LaTeX” frequency rank
- 64719
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lame | LaTeX |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | dünne Platte, dünne Schicht, Klinge | Softwarepaket (eine Sammlung von Makros) für das Textsatzsystem TeX |
Where the eye mixes lame and LaTeX
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. lame runs 4 letters (CVCV) against LaTeX's 5 (CVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: lame vs LaTeX
A purely visual mix-up. lame ([lam]) and LaTeX ([ˈlaːtɛç]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 64719, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lame is recorded at frequency rank #49,857, classified as anoun, pronounced [lam]. LaTeX is at rank #14,862, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈlaːtɛç].
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 64719, this pair ranks #631,724 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of lame vs LaTeX
Shared letters: ael. Private to "lame": m. Private to "LaTeX": tx.
"lame" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "LaTeX" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "lame" for "LaTeX" ever safe?
Frequency check: "lame" vs "LaTeX" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "lame" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "LaTeX" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #631,724 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lame" and "LaTeX" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lähmt vs lame". 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 #631,724 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.