Which to use
“fährst” and “fehlst” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,907
- “fährst” frequency rank
- #29,124
- “fehlst” frequency rank
- 39031
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fährst | fehlst |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs fahren | 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs fehlen |
Where the eye mixes fährst and fehlst
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. fährst and fehlst follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Visual trap between fährst and fehlst
A purely visual mix-up. fährst ([fɛːɐ̯st]) and fehlst ([feːlst]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39031, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fährst is recorded at frequency rank #9,907, classified as averb, pronounced [fɛːɐ̯st]. fehlst is at rank #29,124, tagged as averb, pronounced [feːlst].
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 39031, this pair ranks #1,548,007 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fährst vs fehlst
Shared letters: fhst. Private to "fährst": rä. Private to "fehlst": el.
"fährst" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCC · "fehlst" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- fehlst ← efhlst · fehhlst · fehllst · fehlsst · fehlstt · fehlts · fehslt · felhst
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "fährst" for "fehlst" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "fährst" or "fehlst" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "fährst" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fehlst" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,548,007 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fährst" and "fehlst" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "feels vs fehlst". 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 #1,548,007 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.