züchtenvszumutenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“züchten” and “zumuten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#19,792
“züchten” frequency rank
#28,039
“zumuten” frequency rank
47831
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature züchten zumuten
Definition (Tiere oder Pflanzen) planmäßig vermehren, um bestimmte Merkmale und/oder Eigenschaften hervorzubringen oder zu eliminieren, zu verstärken oder abzuschwächen etwas von sich oder anderen verlangen, was nur schwer zu leisten oder zu ertragen, eigentlich unzumutbar ist

Where the spellings diverge

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

7 ch
züchten
7 ch
zumuten

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. züchten ([ˈt͡sʏçtn̩]) and zumuten ([ˈt͡suːˌmuːtn̩]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47831, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

züchten is recorded at frequency rank #19,792, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈt͡sʏçtn̩]. zumuten is at rank #28,039, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈt͡suːˌmuːtn̩].

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 47831, this pair ranks #1,270,400 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of züchten vs zumuten

Shared letters: entz. Private to "züchten": chü. Private to "zumuten": mu.

"züchten" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC  ·  "zumuten" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • zumutenuzmuten · zmuuten · zummuten · zumtuen · zumuetn · zumutenn · zumutne · zumutten

Frequency comparison

züchten#19,792
zumuten#28,039

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "züchten" and "zumuten" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈt͡sʏçtn̩] versus [ˈt͡suːˌmuːtn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "züchten" or "zumuten"?
"züchten" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,792 in our German list, against #28,039 for "zumuten". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering züchten vs zumuten

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “züchten” 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