Which to use
“fähig” is an adjective and “fail” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,300
- “fähig” frequency rank
- #27,286
- “fail” frequency rank
- 33586
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fähig | fail |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | in der Lage, imstande (etwas zu tun); über die Möglichkeiten verfügend, etwas zu tun | ein Ausfall, ein Fehlschlag |
Where the eye mixes fähig and fail
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. fähig runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against fail's 4 (CVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses fähig with fail
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: fähig is [ˈfɛːɪç] while fail is [feɪl]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33586, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fähig is recorded at frequency rank #6,300, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈfɛːɪç]. fail is at rank #27,286, tagged as anoun, pronounced [feɪl].
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 33586, this pair ranks #1,682,613 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fähig vs fail
Shared letters: fi. Private to "fähig": ghä. Private to "fail": al.
"fähig" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "fail" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- fail ← afil · faill · fali · ffail · fial
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "fähig" and "fail" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "fähig" or "fail" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "fähig" and "fail" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "fähig" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fail" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,682,613 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fähig" and "fail" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fail vs fils". 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 #1,682,613 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.