fegenvsfolgenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“fegen” and “folgen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#33,040
“fegen” frequency rank
#566
“folgen” frequency rank
33606
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fegen folgen
Definition mit einem Besen entfernen jemandem oder etwas hinterhergehen oder auch hinterherfahren

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
fegen
6 ch
folgen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. fegen ([ˈfeːɡn̩]) and folgen ([ˈfɔlɡn̩]) 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 33606, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fegen is recorded at frequency rank #33,040, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfeːɡn̩]. folgen is at rank #566, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfɔlɡn̩].

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 33606, this pair ranks #1,682,133 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of fegen vs folgen

Shared letters: efgn. Private to "fegen": -. Private to "folgen": lo.

"fegen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "folgen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • fegenefgen · feegn · fegenn · feggen · fegne · ffegen · fgeen
  • folgenffolgen · foglen · folegn · folgenn · folggen · folgne · follgen · oflgen

Frequency comparison

fegen#33,040
folgen#566

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fegen" and "folgen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈfeːɡn̩] versus [ˈfɔlɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "fegen" or "folgen"?
"folgen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #566 in our German list, against #33,040 for "fegen". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering fegen vs folgen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “fegen” 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