fähigenvsfairenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#26,882
“fähigen” frequency rank
#11,424
“fairen” frequency rank
38306
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fähigen fairen
Definition Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs fähig Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs fair

Where the spellings diverge

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

7 ch
fähigen
6 ch
fairen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. fähigen ([ˈfɛːɪɡn̩]) and fairen ([ˈfɛːʁən]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38306, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fähigen is recorded at frequency rank #26,882, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈfɛːɪɡn̩]. fairen is at rank #11,424, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈfɛːʁən].

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 38306, this pair ranks #1,567,386 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of fähigen vs fairen

Shared letters: efin. Private to "fähigen": ghä. Private to "fairen": ar.

"fähigen" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "fairen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • fairenafiren · faiern · fairenn · fairne · fairren · farien · ffairen · fiaren

Frequency comparison

fähigen#26,882
fairen#11,424

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fähigen" and "fairen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈfɛːɪɡn̩] versus [ˈfɛːʁən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "fähigen" or "fairen"?
"fairen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,424 in our German list, against #26,882 for "fähigen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering fähigen vs fairen

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 “fähigen” 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