FeenvsfeilenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Feen is a noun, feilen is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Feen” is a noun and “feilen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#30,551
“Feen” frequency rank
#33,041
“feilen” frequency rank
63592
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Feen feilen
Definition Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Fee mit einer Feile bearbeiten

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
Feen
6 ch
feilen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Feen is [ˈfeːən] while feilen is [ˈfaɪ̯lən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63592, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Feen is recorded at frequency rank #30,551, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈfeːən]. feilen is at rank #33,041, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfaɪ̯lən].

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 63592, this pair ranks #671,314 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Feen vs feilen

Shared letters: efn. Private to "Feen": -. Private to "feilen": il.

"Feen" · 4 letters · shape CVVC  ·  "feilen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Feenefen · feenn · fene · ffeen
  • feilenefilen · feieln · feilenn · feillen · feilne · felien · ffeilen

Frequency comparison

Feen#30,551
feilen#33,041

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Feen" and "feilen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Feen" is a noun and "feilen" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Feen" or "feilen"?
"Feen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #30,551 in our German list, against #33,041 for "feilen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Feen vs feilen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “Feen”; for a verb, it's “feilen”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Feen” 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