Which to use
“feilen” and “fixen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #33,041
- “feilen” frequency rank
- #21,967
- “fixen” frequency rank
- 55008
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | feilen | fixen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | mit einer Feile bearbeiten | sich eine (Drogen-)Spritze setzen |
Where the eye mixes feilen and fixen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. feilen runs 6 letters (CVVCVC) against fixen's 5 (CVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between feilen and fixen
A purely visual mix-up. feilen ([ˈfaɪ̯lən]) and fixen ([ˈfɪksn̩]) 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 55008, 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]. fixen is at rank #21,967, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfɪksn̩].
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 55008, this pair ranks #996,319 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of feilen vs fixen
Shared letters: efin. Private to "feilen": l. Private to "fixen": x.
"feilen" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC · "fixen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "feilen" and "fixen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "feilen" or "fixen"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "feilen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fixen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #996,319 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "feilen" and "fixen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "feilen vs Filet". 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 #996,319 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.