Which to use
“schlechtem” and “schlechten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #13,932
- “schlechtem” frequency rank
- #2,785
- “schlechten” frequency rank
- 16717
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | schlechtem | schlechten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Dativ Singular Maskulinum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs schlecht | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Adjektivs schlecht |
Where the eye mixes schlechtem and schlechten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. schlechtem and schlechten follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCCCVCCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Visual trap between schlechtem and schlechten
A purely visual mix-up. schlechtem ([ˈʃlɛçtəm]) and schlechten ([ˈʃlɛçtn̩]) 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 a single letter - m in “schlechtem” becomes n in “schlechten”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16717, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
schlechtem is recorded at frequency rank #13,932, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃlɛçtəm]. schlechten is at rank #2,785, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈʃlɛçtn̩].
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 16717, this pair ranks #1,933,551 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of schlechtem vs schlechten
Shared letters: cehlst. Private to "schlechtem": m. Private to "schlechten": n.
"schlechtem" · 10 letters · shape CCCCVCCCVC · "schlechten" · 10 letters · shape CCCCVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- schlechtem ← cshlechtem · scchlechtem · schelchtem · schhlechtem · schlcehtem · schlecchtem · schlechetm · schlechhtem
- schlechten ← cshlechten · scchlechten · schelchten · schhlechten · schlcehten · schlecchten · schlechetn · schlechhten
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "schlechtem" for "schlechten" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "schlechtem" or "schlechten" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "schlechtem" and "schlechten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "schlechtem" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "schlechten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,933,551 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "schlechtem" and "schlechten" 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 #1,933,551 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.