nehmenvsNelkenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: nehmen is a verb, Nelken is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“nehmen” is a verb and “Nelken” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#323
“nehmen” frequency rank
#42,703
“Nelken” frequency rank
43026
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature nehmen Nelken
Definition eine Sache greifen Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Nelke

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set nehmen and Nelken apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
nehmen
6 ch
Nelken

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: nehmen is [ˈneːmən] while Nelken is [ˈnɛlkn̩]. 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 noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43026, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

nehmen is recorded at frequency rank #323, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈneːmən]. Nelken is at rank #42,703, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈnɛlkn̩].

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 43026, this pair ranks #1,430,912 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of nehmen vs Nelken

Shared letters: en. Private to "nehmen": hm. Private to "Nelken": kl.

"nehmen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "Nelken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • nehmenenhmen · nehemn · nehhmen · nehmenn · nehmmen · nehmne · nemhen · nhemen
  • Nelkenenlken · neklen · nelekn · nelkenn · nelkken · nelkne · nellken · nleken

Frequency comparison

nehmen#323
Nelken#42,703

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "nehmen" and "Nelken" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "nehmen" is a verb and "Nelken" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "nehmen" or "Nelken"?
"nehmen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #323 in our German list, against #42,703 for "Nelken". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering nehmen vs Nelken

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “nehmen”; for a noun, it's “Nelken”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “nehmen” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list