Which to use
“fühlen” and “füllen” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,290
- “fühlen” frequency rank
- #5,171
- “füllen” frequency rank
- 6461
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fühlen | füllen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | per Tastsinn beziehungsweise allgemein über die Haut wahrnehmen oder erkunden | einen Behälter voll machen, eine Aushöhlung stopfen |
Where the eye mixes fühlen and füllen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses fühlen with füllen
A purely visual mix-up. fühlen ([ˈfyːlən]) and füllen ([ˈfʏlən]) 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 a single letter - h in “fühlen” becomes l in “füllen”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 6461, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fühlen is recorded at frequency rank #1,290, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfyːlən]. füllen is at rank #5,171, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfʏlən].
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 6461, this pair ranks #1,991,568 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fühlen vs füllen
Shared letters: eflnü. Private to "fühlen": h. Private to "füllen": -.
"fühlen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "füllen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "fühlen" and "füllen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "fühlen" or "füllen"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "fühlen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "füllen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,991,568 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fühlen" and "füllen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fügten vs füllen". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,991,568 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.