Which to use
“frei” is an adjective and “Freier” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #544
- “frei” frequency rank
- #3,443
- “Freier” frequency rank
- 3987
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | frei | Freier |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | unabhängig, nicht gefangen, nicht versklavt | Mann, der eine Frau umwirbt, um sie zu heiraten |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set frei and Freier apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
frei and Freier form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “frei” sits inside “Freier” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 3987, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
frei is recorded at frequency rank #544, classified as anadj, pronounced [fʁaɪ̯]. Freier is at rank #3,443, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈfʁaɪ̯ɐ].
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 3987, this pair ranks #1,998,858 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "frei" and "Freier" be used interchangeably?
Remembering frei vs Freier
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “frei”; for a noun, it's “Freier”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “frei” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable