Which to use
“frei” is an adjective and “fry” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #544
- “frei” frequency rank
- #39,942
- “fry” frequency rank
- 40486
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | frei | fry |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | unabhängig, nicht gefangen, nicht versklavt | braten |
Where the eye mixes frei and fry
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses frei with fry
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: frei is [fʁaɪ̯] while fry is [fɹaɪ]. 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 (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40486, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
frei is recorded at frequency rank #544, classified as anadj, pronounced [fʁaɪ̯]. fry is at rank #39,942, tagged as averb, pronounced [fɹaɪ].
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 40486, this pair ranks #1,507,057 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of frei vs fry
Shared letters: fr. Private to "frei": ei. Private to "fry": y.
"frei" · 4 letters · shape CCVV · "fry" · 3 letters · shape CCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- frei ← feri · ffrei · frie · frrei · rfei
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "frei" and "fry" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "frei" vs "fry" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "frei" and "fry" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "frei" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fry" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,507,057 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "frei" and "fry" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "firm vs fry". 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 #1,507,057 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.