Which to use
“them” is a verb and “TM” is a name - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #19,418
- “them” frequency rank
- #19,699
- “TM” frequency rank
- 39117
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | them | TM |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Dire. | Abréviation de Their Majesties, référant à un roi et sa reine consort ensemble. |
Where the eye mixes them and TM
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: them vs TM
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: them is \θem\ while TM is \ðɛə(ɹ) ˈmædʒ.ə.stiz\. 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 (verb vs name), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39117, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
them is recorded at frequency rank #19,418, classified as averb, pronounced \θem\. TM is at rank #19,699, tagged as aname, pronounced \ðɛə(ɹ) ˈmædʒ.ə.stiz\.
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 39117, this pair ranks #250,383 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of them vs TM
Shared letters: mt. Private to "them": eh. Private to "TM": -.
"them" · 4 letters · shape CCVC · "TM" · 2 letters · shape CC
Known mistypes of this pair
- them ← htem · tehm · themm · thhem · thme · tthem
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "them" for "TM" ever safe?
Frequency check: "them" vs "TM" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "them" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "TM" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #250,383 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "them" and "TM" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "tif vs TM". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #250,383 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.