flügelnvsFlügenTell them apart

Quick tell: flügeln is a verb, Flügen is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“flügeln” is a verb and “Flügen” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#16,424
“flügeln” frequency rank
#20,251
“Flügen” frequency rank
36675
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature flügeln Flügen
Definition poetisch für beflügeln Dativ Plural des Substantivs Flug

Where the eye mixes flügeln and Flügen

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. flügeln runs 7 letters (CCVCVCC) against Flügen's 6 (CCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
flügeln
6 ch
Flügen

Why the eye confuses flügeln with Flügen

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: flügeln is [ˈflyːɡl̩n] while Flügen is [ˈflyːɡn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36675, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

flügeln is recorded at frequency rank #16,424, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈflyːɡl̩n]. Flügen is at rank #20,251, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈflyːɡn̩].

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 36675, this pair ranks #1,609,529 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of flügeln vs Flügen

Shared letters: efglnü. Private to "flügeln": -. Private to "Flügen": -.

"flügeln" · 7 letters · shape CCVCVCC  ·  "Flügen" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "flügeln" for "Flügen" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "flügeln" is a verb and "Flügen" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "flügeln" vs "Flügen" - which ranks higher?
"flügeln" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,424 in our German list, against #20,251 for "Flügen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "flügeln" and "Flügen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "flügeln" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Flügen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,609,529 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "flügeln" and "Flügen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Flügen vs flügge". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,609,529 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list