FragevsFratzeWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#251
“Frage” frequency rank
#41,817
“Fratze” frequency rank
42068
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Frage Fratze
Definition Äußerung, die Antwort oder Klärung verlangt; Aufforderung zur Antwort verzerrtes, hässliches Gesicht

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Frage and Fratze apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
Frage
6 ch
Fratze

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. Frage ([ˈfʁaːɡə]) and Fratze ([ˈfʁat͡sə]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42068, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Frage is recorded at frequency rank #251, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈfʁaːɡə]. Fratze is at rank #41,817, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfʁat͡sə].

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 42068, this pair ranks #1,460,524 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Frage vs Fratze

Shared letters: aefr. Private to "Frage": g. Private to "Fratze": tz.

"Frage" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV  ·  "Fratze" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Fragefarge · ffrage · fraeg · fragge · frgae · frrage · rfage
  • Fratzefartze · ffratze · fratez · frattze · fratzze · frazte · frratze · frtaze

Frequency comparison

Frage#251
Fratze#41,817

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Frage" and "Fratze" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈfʁaːɡə] versus [ˈfʁat͡sə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "Frage" or "Fratze"?
"Frage" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #251 in our German list, against #41,817 for "Fratze". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering Frage vs Fratze

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 “Frage” 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