Which to use
“fechten” and “fehlen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #29,573
- “fechten” frequency rank
- #1,415
- “fehlen” frequency rank
- 30988
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fechten | fehlen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit Klingen (Schwertern, Degen, Säbeln und so weiter) kämpfen | nicht vorhanden sein |
Where the eye mixes fechten and fehlen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses fechten with fehlen
A purely visual mix-up. fechten ([ˈfɛçtn̩]) and fehlen ([ˈfeːlən]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30988, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fechten is recorded at frequency rank #29,573, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfɛçtn̩]. fehlen is at rank #1,415, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfeːlən].
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 30988, this pair ranks #1,737,006 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fechten vs fehlen
Shared letters: efhn. Private to "fechten": ct. Private to "fehlen": l.
"fechten" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC · "fehlen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "fechten" for "fehlen" ever safe?
Which is more common, "fechten" or "fehlen"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "fechten" and "fehlen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "fechten" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fehlen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,737,006 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fechten" and "fehlen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fechten vs Fechter". 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 #1,737,006 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.