fliegenvsfliegstWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#1,845
“fliegen” frequency rank
#34,654
“fliegst” frequency rank
36499
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fliegen fliegst
Definition sich ohne Bodenkontakt in der Luft, im freien Raum fortbewegen (mithilfe von Flügeln, eines Antriebs, eines Flugzeugs oder Ähnlichem) 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs fliegen

Where the spellings diverge

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

7 ch
fliegen
7 ch
fliegst

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. fliegen ([ˈfliːɡn̩]) and fliegst ([fliːkst]) 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 36499, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fliegen is recorded at frequency rank #1,845, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfliːɡn̩]. fliegst is at rank #34,654, tagged as averb, pronounced [fliːkst].

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 36499, this pair ranks #1,614,093 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of fliegen vs fliegst

Shared letters: efgil. Private to "fliegen": n. Private to "fliegst": st.

"fliegen" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC  ·  "fliegst" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • fliegenffliegen · filegen · fleigen · flieegn · fliegenn · flieggen · fliegne · fligeen
  • fliegstffliegst · filegst · fleigst · flieggst · fliegsst · fliegstt · fliegts · fliesgt

Frequency comparison

fliegen#1,845
fliegst#34,654

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fliegen" and "fliegst" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈfliːɡn̩] versus [fliːkst]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "fliegen" or "fliegst"?
"fliegen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,845 in our German list, against #34,654 for "fliegst". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering fliegen vs fliegst

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 “fliegen” 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