zachvszäheWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“zach” and “zähe” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#21,855
“zach” frequency rank
#44,398
“zähe” frequency rank
66253
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature zach zähe
Definition zäh, auch übertragen für mühsam Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs zäh

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set zach and zähe apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
zach
4 ch
zähe

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. zach ([t͡sax]) and zähe ([ˈt͡sɛːə]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 66253, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

zach is recorded at frequency rank #21,855, classified as anadj, pronounced [t͡sax]. zähe is at rank #44,398, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈt͡sɛːə].

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 66253, this pair ranks #579,401 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of zach vs zähe

Shared letters: hz. Private to "zach": ac. Private to "zähe": .

"zach" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "zähe" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • zachazch · zacch · zachh · zahc · zcah · zzach

Frequency comparison

zach#21,855
zähe#44,398

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "zach" and "zähe" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([t͡sax] versus [ˈt͡sɛːə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "zach" or "zähe"?
"zach" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,855 in our German list, against #44,398 for "zähe". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering zach vs zähe

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “zach” 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