Which to use
“fehlen” and “fehlst” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,415
- “fehlen” frequency rank
- #29,124
- “fehlst” frequency rank
- 30539
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fehlen | fehlst |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nicht vorhanden sein | 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs fehlen |
Where the eye mixes fehlen and fehlst
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. fehlen (CVCCVC) and fehlst (CVCCCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses fehlen with fehlst
A purely visual mix-up. fehlen ([ˈfeːlən]) and fehlst ([feːlst]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30539, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fehlen is recorded at frequency rank #1,415, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfeːlən]. fehlst is at rank #29,124, tagged as averb, pronounced [feːlst].
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 30539, this pair ranks #1,745,850 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fehlen vs fehlst
Shared letters: efhl. Private to "fehlen": n. Private to "fehlst": st.
"fehlen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "fehlst" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "fehlen" and "fehlst" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "fehlen" or "fehlst"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "fehlen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fehlst" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,745,850 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fehlen" and "fehlst" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "feels vs fehlst". 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 #1,745,850 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.