feinstervsFensterWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: feinster is a adjective, Fenster is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“feinster” is an adjective and “Fenster” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#46,638
“feinster” frequency rank
#1,129
“Fenster” frequency rank
47767
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature feinster Fenster
Definition Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Superlativs des Adjektivs fein eine baulich verschieden ausgestaltete verglaste Öffnung in einem Bauwerk, deren hauptsächliche Funktion darin besteht, Licht in das Bauwerk zu führen und dieses zu belüften

Where the eye mixes feinster and Fenster

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. feinster runs 8 letters (CVVCCCVC) against Fenster's 7 (CVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
feinster
7 ch
Fenster

Why the eye confuses feinster with Fenster

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: feinster is [ˈfaɪ̯nstɐ] while Fenster is [ˈfɛnstɐ]. 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 (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47767, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

feinster is recorded at frequency rank #46,638, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈfaɪ̯nstɐ]. Fenster is at rank #1,129, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfɛnstɐ].

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 47767, this pair ranks #1,272,751 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of feinster vs Fenster

Shared letters: efnrst. Private to "feinster": i. Private to "Fenster": -.

"feinster" · 8 letters · shape CVVCCCVC  ·  "Fenster" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • feinster ← efinster · feinnster · feinsetr · feinsster · feinsterr · feinstre · feinstter · feintser
  • Fenster ← efnster · fennster · fensetr · fensster · fensterr · fenstre · fenstter · fentser

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "feinster" and "Fenster" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "feinster" is an adjective and "Fenster" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "feinster" vs "Fenster" - which ranks higher?
"Fenster" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,129 in our German list, against #46,638 for "feinster". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "feinster" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Fenster" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,272,751 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "feinster" and "Fenster" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "feinster vs Fensters". 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 #1,272,751 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list