nähenvsnähertTell them apart

Which to use

“nähen” and “nähert” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#13,452
“nähen” frequency rank
#10,533
“nähert” frequency rank
23985
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature nähen nähert
Definition Textilteile mit einem Faden verbinden 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs nähern

Where the eye mixes nähen and nähert

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. nähen runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against nähert's 6 (CVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

5 ch
nähen
6 ch
nähert

Visual trap between nähen and nähert

A purely visual mix-up. nähen ([ˈnɛːən]) and nähert ([ˈnɛːɐt]) 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 23985, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

nähen is recorded at frequency rank #13,452, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈnɛːən]. nähert is at rank #10,533, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈnɛːɐt].

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 23985, this pair ranks #1,853,869 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of nähen vs nähert

Shared letters: ehnä. Private to "nähen": -. Private to "nähert": rt.

"nähen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "nähert" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "nähen" and "nähert" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈnɛːən] versus [ˈnɛːɐt]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "nähen" vs "nähert" - which ranks higher?
"nähert" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,533 in our German list, against #13,452 for "nähen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "nähen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "nähert" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,853,869 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "nähen" and "nähert" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nagen vs nähen". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,853,869 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list