Which to use
“Pfeilen” is a noun and “preisen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #38,945
- “Pfeilen” frequency rank
- #4,923
- “preisen” frequency rank
- 43868
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Pfeilen | preisen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Dativ Plural des Substantivs Pfeil | jemanden oder etwas überschwänglich loben, dessen Größe bewundern/anerkennen |
Where the eye mixes Pfeilen and preisen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. Pfeilen and preisen follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCVVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses Pfeilen with preisen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Pfeilen is [ˈp͡faɪ̯lən] while preisen is [ˈpʁaɪ̯zn̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43868, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Pfeilen is recorded at frequency rank #38,945, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈp͡faɪ̯lən]. preisen is at rank #4,923, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈpʁaɪ̯zn̩].
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 43868, this pair ranks #1,404,385 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Pfeilen vs preisen
Shared letters: einp. Private to "Pfeilen": fl. Private to "preisen": rs.
"Pfeilen" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC · "preisen" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Pfeilen" for "preisen" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "Pfeilen" or "preisen" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Pfeilen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "preisen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,404,385 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Pfeilen" and "preisen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Pfeilen vs Pfeilern". 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 #1,404,385 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.