Which to use
“Uhr” is a noun and “um” is a preposition - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #200
- “Uhr” frequency rank
- #49
- “um” frequency rank
- 249
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Uhr | um |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Instrument zur Messung der Zeit, Chronometer | bezeichnet eine Lage in Bezug zu etwas oder jemanden – wo? |
Where the eye mixes Uhr and um
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Uhr vs um
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Uhr is [uːɐ̯] while um is [ʊm]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs preposition), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 249, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Uhr is recorded at frequency rank #200, classified as anoun, pronounced [uːɐ̯]. um is at rank #49, tagged as aprep, pronounced [ʊm].
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 249, this pair ranks #2,006,088 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Uhr vs um
Shared letters: u. Private to "Uhr": hr. Private to "um": m.
"Uhr" · 3 letters · shape VCC · "um" · 2 letters · shape VC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Uhr" and "um" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "Uhr" or "um"?
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 "Uhr" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "um" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #2,006,088 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Uhr" and "um" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "uch vs Uhr". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #2,006,088 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.