Which to use
“falten” and “fehlten” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,852
- “falten” frequency rank
- #11,647
- “fehlten” frequency rank
- 22499
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | falten | fehlten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | umbiegen und zusammenlegen | 1. Person Plural Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs fehlen |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set falten and fehlten apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
falten and fehlten form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22499, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
falten is recorded at frequency rank #10,852, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfaltn̩]. fehlten is at rank #11,647, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfeːltn̩].
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 22499, this pair ranks #1,873,425 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "falten" and "fehlten" be used interchangeably?
Remembering falten vs fehlten
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 “falten” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable