Which to use
“Flecken” and “Flicken” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,426
- “Flecken” frequency rank
- #31,547
- “Flicken” frequency rank
- 37973
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Flecken | Flicken |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | sich zum Beispiel durch Verschmutzung oder Farbe von der Umgebung unterscheidende Stelle | ein kleiner, meist quadratförmiger Ausschnitt eines Stoffes zur Bedeckung/Reparatur aufgerissener Löcher in Kleidungsstücken |
Where the eye mixes Flecken and Flicken
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. Flecken and Flicken follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses Flecken with Flicken
A purely visual mix-up. Flecken ([ˈflɛkn̩]) and Flicken ([ˈflɪkn̩]) 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 - e in “Flecken” becomes i in “Flicken”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37973, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Flecken is recorded at frequency rank #6,426, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈflɛkn̩]. Flicken is at rank #31,547, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈflɪkn̩].
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 37973, this pair ranks #1,576,207 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Flecken vs Flicken
Shared letters: cefkln. Private to "Flecken": -. Private to "Flicken": i.
"Flecken" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC · "Flicken" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Flecken" and "Flicken" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "Flecken" or "Flicken"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "Flecken" and "Flicken" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "Flecken" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Flicken" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,576,207 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Flecken" and "Flicken" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Flicken vs Flocken". 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 #1,576,207 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.