Which to use
“fasten” is a verb and “Fetten” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,357
- “fasten” frequency rank
- #8,709
- “Fetten” frequency rank
- 24066
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fasten | Fetten |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (aus körperlichen oder religiösen Gründen) für eine bestimmte Zeit auf alle oder gewisse Nahrung verzichten | Dativ Plural des Substantivs Fett |
Where the eye mixes fasten and Fetten
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses fasten with Fetten
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: fasten is [ˈfastn̩] while Fetten is [ˈfɛtn̩]. 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 noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 24066, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fasten is recorded at frequency rank #15,357, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfastn̩]. Fetten is at rank #8,709, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfɛtn̩].
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 24066, this pair ranks #1,852,814 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fasten vs Fetten
Shared letters: efnt. Private to "fasten": as. Private to "Fetten": -.
"fasten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "Fetten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "fasten" and "Fetten" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "fasten" or "Fetten" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "fasten" and "Fetten" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "fasten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Fetten" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,852,814 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fasten" and "Fetten" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fasten vs fügten". 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 #1,852,814 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.