nehmevsnerveWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#1,674
“nehme” frequency rank
#48,351
“nerve” frequency rank
50025
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature nehme nerve
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs nehmen 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs nerven

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set nehme and nerve apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
nehme
5 ch
nerve

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. nehme ([ˈneːmə]) and nerve ([ˈnɛʁfə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50025, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

nehme is recorded at frequency rank #1,674, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈneːmə]. nerve is at rank #48,351, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈnɛʁfə].

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 50025, this pair ranks #1,189,440 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of nehme vs nerve

Shared letters: en. Private to "nehme": hm. Private to "nerve": rv.

"nehme" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "nerve" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • nehmeenhme · nehem · nehhme · nehmme · nemhe · nheme · nnehme
  • nerveenrve · nerev · nerrve · nervve · nnerve · nreve

Frequency comparison

nehme#1,674
nerve#48,351

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "nehme" and "nerve" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈneːmə] versus [ˈnɛʁfə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "nehme" or "nerve"?
"nehme" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,674 in our German list, against #48,351 for "nerve". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering nehme vs nerve

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “nehme” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list