Gefühle vs Gefühls, What's the Difference?

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 spellings diverge

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

7 ch

Gefühle

7 ch

Gefühls

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

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

Frequency comparison

Gefühle#2,339

Gefühls#43,203

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Gefühle" and "Gefühls" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently ([ɡəˈfyːlə] versus [ɡəˈfyːls]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "Gefühle" or "Gefühls"?

"Gefühle" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,339 in our German list, against #43,203 for "Gefühls". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering Gefühle vs Gefühls

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Gefühle” entry
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