Which to use
“Uhr” is a noun and “UTC” is an abbrev - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #200
- “Uhr” frequency rank
- #21,815
- “UTC” frequency rank
- 22015
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Uhr | UTC |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Instrument zur Messung der Zeit, Chronometer | Koordinierte Weltzeit; die Referenzzeit, von der die Ortszeiten in den verschiedenen Zeitzonen der Erde abgeleitet werden |
Where the eye mixes Uhr and UTC
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Why the eye confuses Uhr with UTC
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Uhr is [uːɐ̯] while UTC is [ˌuːteːˈt͡seː]. 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 (noun vs abbrev), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22015, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Uhr is recorded at frequency rank #200, classified as anoun, pronounced [uːɐ̯]. UTC is at rank #21,815, tagged as anabbrev, pronounced [ˌuːteːˈt͡seː].
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 22015, this pair ranks #1,879,386 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Uhr vs UTC
Shared letters: u. Private to "Uhr": hr. Private to "UTC": ct.
"Uhr" · 3 letters · shape VCC · "UTC" · 3 letters · shape VCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Uhr" for "UTC" ever safe?
Frequency check: "Uhr" vs "UTC" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
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 "UTC" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,879,386 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Uhr" and "UTC" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "uch vs UTC". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,879,386 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.