Which to use
“zäh” and “zähe” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,775
- “zäh” frequency rank
- #44,398
- “zähe” frequency rank
- 63173
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | zäh | zähe |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | langsam, schwerfällig fließend | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs zäh |
Where the eye mixes zäh and zähe
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. zäh runs 3 letters (CVC) against zähe's 4 (CVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: zäh vs zähe
A purely visual mix-up. zäh ([t͡sɛː]) 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 differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “zäh” sits inside “zähe”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63173, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
zäh is recorded at frequency rank #18,775, classified as anadj, pronounced [t͡sɛː]. 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 63173, this pair ranks #686,189 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of zäh vs zähe
Shared letters: hzä. Private to "zäh": -. Private to "zähe": e.
"zäh" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "zähe" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "zäh" and "zähe" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "zäh" or "zähe"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "zäh" and "zähe" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "zäh" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "zähe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #686,189 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "zäh" and "zähe" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "zähe vs zapf". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #686,189 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.