fasstevsfesteWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: fasste is a verb, feste is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“fasste” is a verb and “feste” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#10,278
“fasste” frequency rank
#3,372
“feste” frequency rank
13650
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fasste feste
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs fassen Nominativ Singular Femininum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs fest

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set fasste and feste apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
fasste
5 ch
feste

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: fasste is [ˈfastə] while feste is [ˈfɛstə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13650, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fasste is recorded at frequency rank #10,278, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfastə]. feste is at rank #3,372, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈfɛstə].

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 13650, this pair ranks #1,956,642 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of fasste vs feste

Shared letters: efst. Private to "fasste": a. Private to "feste": -.

"fasste" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV  ·  "feste" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • fassteafsste · fasset · fasstte · faste · fastse · faßte · ffasste · fsaste
  • festeefste · feset · fesste · festte · fetse · ffeste · fsete

Frequency comparison

fasste#10,278
feste#3,372

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fasste" and "feste" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "fasste" is a verb and "feste" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "fasste" or "feste"?
"feste" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,372 in our German list, against #10,278 for "fasste". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering fasste vs feste

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “fasste”; for an adjective, it's “feste”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “fasste” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list