fasvsFDPWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: fas is a verb, FDP is an abbrev, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“fas” is a verb and “FDP” is an abbrev - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#38,095
“fas” frequency rank
#1,414
“FDP” frequency rank
39509
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fas FDP
Definition 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs fasen Kurzbezeichnung der Freien Demokratischen Partei der BRD bis 1968 und seit 2001, dazwischen F.D.P.

Where the eye mixes fas and FDP

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.

3 ch
fas
3 ch
FDP

Why the eye confuses fas with FDP

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: fas is [faːs] while FDP is [ɛfdeːˈpeː]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs abbrev), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39509, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fas is recorded at frequency rank #38,095, classified as averb, pronounced [faːs]. FDP is at rank #1,414, tagged as anabbrev, pronounced [ɛfdeːˈpeː].

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 39509, this pair ranks #1,534,817 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of fas vs FDP

Shared letters: f. Private to "fas": as. Private to "FDP": dp.

"fas" · 3 letters · shape CVC  ·  "FDP" · 3 letters · shape CCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "fas" and "FDP" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "fas" is a verb and "FDP" an abbrev, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "fas" vs "FDP" - which ranks higher?
"FDP" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,414 in our German list, against #38,095 for "fas". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "fas" and "FDP" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "fas" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "FDP" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,534,817 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "fas" and "FDP" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fas vs fist". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,534,817 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list