gefälligvsgefälltWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: gefällig is a adjective, gefällt is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“gefällig” is an adjective and “gefällt” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#18,557
“gefällig” frequency rank
#991
“gefällt” frequency rank
19548
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature gefällig gefällt
Definition jemandem einen Dienst (Gefallen) erweisend Partizip Perfekt des Verbs fällen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set gefällig and gefällt apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
gefällig
7 ch
gefällt

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

gefällig and gefällt 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 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 19548, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

gefällig is recorded at frequency rank #18,557, classified as anadj, pronounced [ɡəˈfɛlɪç]. gefällt is at rank #991, tagged as averb, pronounced [ɡəˈfɛlt].

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 19548, this pair ranks #1,907,188 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

gefällig#18,557
gefällt#991

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "gefällig" and "gefällt" be used interchangeably?
No, "gefällig" and "gefällt" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering gefällig vs gefällt

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “gefällig”; for a verb, it's “gefällt”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “gefällig” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list