Which to use
“schlecht” and “schlechtem” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #649
- “schlecht” frequency rank
- #13,932
- “schlechtem” frequency rank
- 14581
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | schlecht | schlechtem |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nicht den Anforderungen oder Erwartungen entsprechend, weil mit Mängeln behaftet | Dativ Singular Maskulinum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs schlecht |
Where the eye mixes schlecht and schlechtem
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between schlecht and schlechtem
A purely visual mix-up. schlecht ([ʃlɛçt]) and schlechtem ([ˈʃlɛçtəm]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “schlecht” sits inside “schlechtem”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14581, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
schlecht is recorded at frequency rank #649, classified as anadj, pronounced [ʃlɛçt]. schlechtem is at rank #13,932, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃlɛçtəm].
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 14581, this pair ranks #1,950,213 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of schlecht vs schlechtem
Shared letters: cehlst. Private to "schlecht": -. Private to "schlechtem": m.
"schlecht" · 8 letters · shape CCCCVCCC · "schlechtem" · 10 letters · shape CCCCVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- schlecht ← cshlecht · scchlecht · schelcht · schhlecht · schlceht · schleccht · schlechht · schlechtt
- schlechtem ← cshlechtem · scchlechtem · schelchtem · schhlechtem · schlcehtem · schlecchtem · schlechetm · schlechhtem
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "schlecht" and "schlechtem" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "schlecht" or "schlechtem"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "schlecht" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schlechtem" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,950,213 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "schlecht" and "schlechtem" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "schlechtem vs schlichtes". 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 #1,950,213 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.