fehlevsFeldWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#20,247
“fehle” frequency rank
#1,966
“Feld” frequency rank
22213
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fehle Feld
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs fehlen Acker; eine Fläche, auf der Pflanzen für eine Ernte angebaut werden

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set fehle and Feld apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
fehle
4 ch
Feld

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

fehle and Feld 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 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22213, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fehle is recorded at frequency rank #20,247, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfeːlə]. Feld is at rank #1,966, tagged as anoun, pronounced [fɛlt].

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 22213, this pair ranks #1,876,921 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

fehle#20,247
Feld#1,966

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fehle" and "Feld" be used interchangeably?
No, "fehle" and "Feld" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering fehle vs Feld

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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