Fehler vs Fiedler, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#746
“Fehler” frequency rank: #22,722
“Fiedler” frequency rank: 23468
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	Fehler	Fiedler
Definition	Abweichung von einem optimalen Zustand, Verfahren oder dem Richtigen	Person, die eine Fiedel spielt

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Fehler and Fiedler apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch

Fehler

7 ch

Fiedler

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Fehler ([ˈfeːlɐ]) and Fiedler ([ˈfiːdlɐ]) 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 23468, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Fehler is recorded at frequency rank #746, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈfeːlɐ]. Fiedler is at rank #22,722, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfiːdlɐ].

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 23468, this pair ranks #1,860,930 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of Fehler vs Fiedler

Shared letters: eflr. Private to "Fehler": h. Private to "Fiedler": di.

"Fehler" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "Fiedler" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

Fehler ← efhler · fehelr · fehhler · fehlerr · fehller · fehlre · felher · ffehler
Fiedler ← feidler · ffiedler · fideler · fieddler · fiedelr · fiedlerr · fiedller · fiedlre

Frequency comparison

Fehler#746

Fiedler#22,722

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Fehler" and "Fiedler" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently ([ˈfeːlɐ] versus [ˈfiːdlɐ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "Fehler" or "Fiedler"?

"Fehler" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #746 in our German list, against #22,722 for "Fiedler". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering Fehler vs Fiedler

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 “Fehler” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable