Which to use
“Faible” and “fail” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #38,729
- “Faible” frequency rank
- #27,286
- “fail” frequency rank
- 66015
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Faible | fail |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Vorliebe, Neigung, Schwäche für etwas oder jemanden; nicht unbedingt begründbare/leicht übertrieben positive Einstellung zu etwas | ein Ausfall, ein Fehlschlag |
Where the eye mixes Faible and fail
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between Faible and fail
A purely visual mix-up. Faible ([ˈfɛːbl̩]) and fail ([feɪl]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 66015, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Faible is recorded at frequency rank #38,729, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈfɛːbl̩]. 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 66015, this pair ranks #587,380 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Faible vs fail
Shared letters: afil. Private to "Faible": be. Private to "fail": -.
"Faible" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV · "fail" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Faible" and "fail" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "Faible" or "fail"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Faible" 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 #587,380 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Faible" and "fail" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Faible vs fiele". 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 #587,380 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.