cm

abbrev

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“cm” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #1,052) as an abbreviation. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#1,052
frequency rank, German
1,273
“C” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Einheitensymbol für Zentimeter; 1 cm = 10⁻² m = 0,01 m = 10 mm

Corpus desk

Index DE-cm · cm · German

cm · rank #1,052 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #1,052
  • LEN-SHORT 2 letters
  • VOW-0 0 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,273
  • PHOTO-FINISH Beitrag

Nearest frequency peer: Beitrag (-1 rank slots)

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Frequency neighbourhood for “cm”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “cm” sits against the nearest ranked German headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

cm vs CT
0% similar
cm vs Cs
0% similar
cm vs Cr
0% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for cm
PropertyValue
Headwordcm
LanguageGerman
Part of speechAbbreviation
Letters2
Frequency rank#1,052
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “cm” sits in German frequency

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).cm lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for cm is neighbouring look-alikes ("CT", "Cs", …), not just typos; it is anabbreviation. Frequency #1,052 among 1,273 “C” headwords. Gloss: "Einheitensymbol für Zentimeter; 1 cm = 10⁻² m = 0,01 m = 10 mm".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for cm, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "CT", "Cs", "Cr", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct German form is cm, spelled C-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    Einheitensymbol für Zentimeter; 1 cm = 10⁻² m = 0,01 m = 10 mm

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how cm appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. 1 dm entspricht 10 cm.
  2. „In den Wüsten gibt es nur wenig Leben, vor allem dort nicht, wo weniger als 5 cm Regen pro Jahr fallen.“

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 German corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "cm"?
"cm" is spelled C-M.
What does "cm" mean?
As an abbreviation, "cm" means: Einheitensymbol für Zentimeter; 1 cm = 10⁻² m = 0,01 m = 10 mm
What words are commonly confused with "cm"?
"cm" is commonly confused with "CT", "Cs", "Cr". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What language does "cm" come from?
"cm" is a German word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

What to do next

You've looked up "cm". Here's where to go from here.

  • "cm" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "CT". View pair
  • Usage frequency rank #1,052 among German headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more German words in the "C" letter cohort. C–Z browse

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list