Which to use
“Gefühle” and “Gefühls” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,339
- “Gefühle” frequency rank
- #43,203
- “Gefühls” frequency rank
- 45542
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Gefühle | Gefühls |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Variante für den Dativ Singular des Substantivs Gefühl | Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Gefühl |
Where the eye mixes Gefühle and Gefühls
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. Gefühle (CVCVCCV) and Gefühls (CVCVCCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses Gefühle with Gefühls
A purely visual mix-up. Gefühle ([ɡəˈfyːlə]) and Gefühls ([ɡəˈfyːls]) 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 - e in “Gefühle” becomes s in “Gefühls”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45542, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Gefühle is recorded at frequency rank #2,339, classified as anoun, pronounced [ɡəˈfyːlə]. Gefühls is at rank #43,203, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ɡəˈfyːls].
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 45542, this pair ranks #1,349,496 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Gefühle vs Gefühls
Shared letters: efghlü. Private to "Gefühle": -. Private to "Gefühls": s.
"Gefühle" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV · "Gefühls" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Gefühle" and "Gefühls" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary German text, does "Gefühle" or "Gefühls" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "Gefühle" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Gefühls" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,349,496 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Gefühle" and "Gefühls" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Gefühls vs gekühlt". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,349,496 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.