filsvsFilzWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“fils” and “Filz” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#49,670
“fils” frequency rank
#24,717
“Filz” frequency rank
74387
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fils Filz
Definition männlicher Nachkomme: Sohn wirrer Faserstoff, der aus nicht gesponnenen (Tier)haaren oder Wolle durch Zusammenpressen hergestellt wird

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set fils and Filz apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
fils
4 ch
Filz

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. fils ([fis]) and Filz ([fɪlt͡s]) 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 a single letter - s in “fils” becomes z in “Filz”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 74387, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fils is recorded at frequency rank #49,670, classified as anoun, pronounced [fis]. Filz is at rank #24,717, tagged as anoun, pronounced [fɪlt͡s].

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 74387, this pair ranks #334,856 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of fils vs Filz

Shared letters: fil. Private to "fils": s. Private to "Filz": z.

"fils" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "Filz" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • filsffils · fills · filss · fisl · flis · ifls
  • Filzffilz · fillz · filzz · fizl · fliz · iflz

Frequency comparison

fils#49,670
Filz#24,717

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fils" and "Filz" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fis] versus [fɪlt͡s]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "fils" or "Filz"?
"Filz" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #24,717 in our German list, against #49,670 for "fils". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering fils vs Filz

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “fils” 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