zevsZeheWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: ze is a pronoun, Zehe is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“ze” is a pronoun and “Zehe” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#19,459
“ze” frequency rank
#43,650
“Zehe” frequency rank
63109
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ze Zehe
Definition unbetonte Form des Personalpronomens zij (Subjektform der dritten Person Singular Femininum): sie der einem Finger entsprechende Teil des Fußes

Where the spellings diverge

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

2 ch
ze
4 ch
Zehe

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ze is [zə] while Zehe is [ˈt͡seːə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “ze” sits inside “Zehe”, and the parts of speech differ too (pronoun vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63109, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ze is recorded at frequency rank #19,459, classified as apron, pronounced [zə]. Zehe is at rank #43,650, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈt͡seːə].

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 63109, this pair ranks #688,469 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of ze vs Zehe

Shared letters: ez. Private to "ze": -. Private to "Zehe": h.

"ze" · 2 letters · shape CV  ·  "Zehe" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Zeheezhe · zeeh · zehhe · zhee · zzehe

Frequency comparison

ze#19,459
Zehe#43,650

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ze" and "Zehe" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "ze" is a pronoun and "Zehe" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "ze" or "Zehe"?
"ze" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,459 in our German list, against #43,650 for "Zehe". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering ze vs Zehe

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a pronoun, it's “ze”; for a noun, it's “Zehe”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “ze” 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