Which to use
“faul” is an adjective and “faulen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #5,826
- “faul” frequency rank
- #17,886
- “faulen” frequency rank
- 23712
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | faul | faulen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nicht mehr frisch; verrottet, verfault | von Mikroorganismen zersetzt werden; in Fäulnis übergehen |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set faul and faulen apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
faul and faulen 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 2 extra letter(s) - “faul” sits inside “faulen” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23712, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
faul is recorded at frequency rank #5,826, classified as anadj, pronounced [faʊ̯l]. faulen is at rank #17,886, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfaʊ̯lən].
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 23712, this pair ranks #1,857,645 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "faul" and "faulen" be used interchangeably?
Remembering faul vs faulen
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “faul”; for a verb, it's “faulen”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “faul” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable