Which to use
“zäh” and “zahm” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,775
- “zäh” frequency rank
- #43,648
- “zahm” frequency rank
- 62423
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | zäh | zahm |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | langsam, schwerfällig fließend | an den Kontakt mit Menschen gewöhnt, friedlich gegenüber Menschen, dem Menschen trauend |
Where the eye mixes zäh and zahm
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. zäh runs 3 letters (CVC) against zahm's 4 (CVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses zäh with zahm
A purely visual mix-up. zäh ([t͡sɛː]) and zahm ([t͡saːm]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 62423, 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]. zahm is at rank #43,648, tagged as anadj, pronounced [t͡saːm].
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 62423, this pair ranks #713,425 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of zäh vs zahm
Shared letters: hz. Private to "zäh": ä. Private to "zahm": am.
"zäh" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "zahm" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- zahm ← azhm · zahhm · zahmm · zamh · zham · zzahm
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "zäh" for "zahm" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "zäh" or "zahm" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "zäh" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "zahm" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #713,425 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "zäh" and "zahm" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "zahm vs zapf". 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 #713,425 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.