fettervsFutterWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#18,238
“fetter” frequency rank
#7,175
“Futter” frequency rank
25413
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fetter Futter
Definition Nominativ Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs fett Nahrung der Tiere

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
fetter
6 ch
Futter

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

fetter and Futter form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by a single letter - e in “fetter” becomes u in “Futter” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25413, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fetter is recorded at frequency rank #18,238, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈfɛtɐ]. Futter is at rank #7,175, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfʊtɐ].

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 25413, this pair ranks #1,833,689 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

fetter#18,238
Futter#7,175

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fetter" and "Futter" be used interchangeably?
No, "fetter" and "Futter" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering fetter vs Futter

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “fetter”; for a noun, it's “Futter”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “fetter” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list