Which to use
“Fell” and “Foul” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,708
- “Fell” frequency rank
- #16,991
- “Foul” frequency rank
- 25699
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Fell | Foul |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | die behaarte Haut eines Tieres | Regelverstoß, bei dem der Gegenspieler mit unfairen und unsportlichen Mitteln benachteiligt wird |
Where the eye mixes Fell and Foul
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Fell vs Foul
A purely visual mix-up. Fell ([fɛl]) and Foul ([faʊ̯l]) 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 25699, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Fell is recorded at frequency rank #8,708, classified as anoun, pronounced [fɛl]. Foul is at rank #16,991, tagged as anoun, pronounced [faʊ̯l].
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 25699, this pair ranks #1,829,325 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Fell vs Foul
Shared letters: fl. Private to "Fell": e. Private to "Foul": ou.
"Fell" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "Foul" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Fell" for "Foul" ever safe?
Which is more common, "Fell" or "Foul"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Fell" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Foul" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,829,325 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Fell" and "Foul" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Fock vs Foul". 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 #1,829,325 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.