Which to use
“zähen” is an adjective and “Zählern” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #37,326
- “zähen” frequency rank
- #47,162
- “Zählern” frequency rank
- 84488
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | zähen | Zählern |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs zäh | Dativ Plural des Substantivs Zähler |
Where the eye mixes zähen and Zählern
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. zähen runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against Zählern's 7 (CVCCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between zähen and Zählern
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: zähen is [ˈt͡sɛːən] while Zählern is [ˈt͡sɛːlɐn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 84488, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
zähen is recorded at frequency rank #37,326, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈt͡sɛːən]. Zählern is at rank #47,162, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈt͡sɛːlɐn].
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 84488, this pair ranks #122,983 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of zähen vs Zählern
Shared letters: ehnzä. Private to "zähen": -. Private to "Zählern": lr.
"zähen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "Zählern" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "zähen" for "Zählern" ever safe?
Which is more common, "zähen" or "Zählern"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "zähen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Zählern" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #122,983 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "zähen" and "Zählern" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "zäher vs Zählern". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #122,983 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.