Usage Note
Ähm is the standard German hesitation filler, equivalent to English 'um' or 'er'. It signals that the speaker is thinking or searching for the right word: Das ist ... ähm ... schwierig zu erklären. It is written as ähm or äh (shorter); both are common in transcribed speech. Considered informal but ubiquitous.
Examples
"Das war, ähm, eigentlich ganz anders gemeint."
Natural Translation
That was, um, actually meant quite differently.
Literal Translation
That was, um, actually quite differently meant.
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