fegenvsfügenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#33,040
“fegen” frequency rank
#11,056
“fügen” frequency rank
44096
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fegen fügen
Definition mit einem Besen entfernen Dinge so aneinandersetzen, miteinander in einen Zusammenhang bringen, dass daraus ein Ganzes wird

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
fegen
5 ch
fügen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. fegen ([ˈfeːɡn̩]) and fügen ([ˈfyːɡn̩]) 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 a single letter - e in “fegen” becomes ü in “fügen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44096, 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]. fügen is at rank #11,056, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfyːɡn̩].

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 44096, this pair ranks #1,397,176 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of fegen vs fügen

Shared letters: efgn. Private to "fegen": -. Private to "fügen": ü.

"fegen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "fügen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • fegenefgen · feegn · fegenn · feggen · fegne · ffegen · fgeen

Frequency comparison

fegen#33,040
fügen#11,056

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fegen" and "fügen" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈfeːɡn̩] versus [ˈfyːɡn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "fegen" or "fügen"?
"fügen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,056 in our German list, against #33,040 for "fegen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering fegen vs fügen

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