zäher vs Zähne, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“zäher” is an adjective and “Zähne” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#40,351
“zäher” frequency rank: #3,865
“Zähne” frequency rank: 44216
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	zäher	Zähne
Definition	Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs zäh	Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Zahn

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set zäher and Zähne apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch

zäher

5 ch

Zähne

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: zäher is [ˈt͡sɛːɐ] while Zähne is [ˈt͡sɛːnə]. 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 (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44216, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

zäher is recorded at frequency rank #40,351, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈt͡sɛːɐ]. Zähne is at rank #3,865, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈt͡sɛːnə].

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 44216, this pair ranks #1,393,253 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of zäher vs Zähne

Shared letters: ehzä. Private to "zäher": r. Private to "Zähne": n.

"zäher" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "Zähne" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Frequency comparison

zäher#40,351

Zähne#3,865

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "zäher" and "Zähne" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "zäher" is an adjective and "Zähne" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "zäher" or "Zähne"?

"Zähne" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,865 in our German list, against #40,351 for "zäher". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering zäher vs Zähne

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “zäher”; for a noun, it's “Zähne”.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “zäher” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable