Which to use
“fallen” and “feilen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #968
- “fallen” frequency rank
- #33,041
- “feilen” frequency rank
- 34009
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fallen | feilen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sich unkontrolliert von oben nach unten bewegen (durch die Gravitation) | mit einer Feile bearbeiten |
Where the eye mixes fallen and feilen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. fallen (CVCCVC) and feilen (CVVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between fallen and feilen
A purely visual mix-up. fallen ([ˈfalən]) and feilen ([ˈfaɪ̯lən]) 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 34009, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fallen is recorded at frequency rank #968, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfalən]. feilen is at rank #33,041, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfaɪ̯lən].
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 34009, this pair ranks #1,673,060 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fallen vs feilen
Shared letters: efln. Private to "fallen": a. Private to "feilen": i.
"fallen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "feilen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "fallen" for "feilen" ever safe?
Frequency check: "fallen" vs "feilen" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "fallen" and "feilen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "fallen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "feilen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,673,060 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fallen" and "feilen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "feilen vs Filet". 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 #1,673,060 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.