feilenvsFelleWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#33,041
“feilen” frequency rank
#31,039
“Felle” frequency rank
64080
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature feilen Felle
Definition mit einer Feile bearbeiten Variante für den Dativ Singular des Substantivs Fell

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
feilen
5 ch
Felle

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: feilen is [ˈfaɪ̯lən] while Felle is [ˈfɛlə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 64080, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

feilen is recorded at frequency rank #33,041, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfaɪ̯lən]. Felle is at rank #31,039, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfɛlə].

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 64080, this pair ranks #654,123 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of feilen vs Felle

Shared letters: efl. Private to "feilen": in. Private to "Felle": -.

"feilen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "Felle" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • feilenefilen · feieln · feilenn · feillen · feilne · felien · ffeilen
  • Felleeflle · felel · ffelle · flele

Frequency comparison

feilen#33,041
Felle#31,039

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "feilen" and "Felle" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "feilen" is a verb and "Felle" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "feilen" or "Felle"?
"Felle" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #31,039 in our German list, against #33,041 for "feilen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering feilen vs Felle

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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