fem

[fɛmˀ]

/[fɛmˀ]/ num

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“fem” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #43,170) as a numeral. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#43,170
frequency rank, German
3,474
“F” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - fünf

Corpus desk

Index DE-fem · fem · German

fem · rank #43,170 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #43,170
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,474
  • PHOTO-FINISH Fehlentscheid…

Nearest frequency peer: Fehlentscheidung (-1 rank slots)

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Häufigkeitsnachbarn des Verwechslers „fem“

Peers mit ähnlichem Corpus-Gewicht, getrennt von den Verwechslungspaaren unten

corpus weight

What this shows Balken platzieren „fem“ gegen die nächsten gerankten deutschen Lemmata, kein Reprint der Verwechslungsdesk.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

fem vs fi
33% similar
fem vs FH
0% similar
fem vs fl
33% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for fem
PropertyValue
Headwordfem
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNumeral
IPA[fɛmˀ]
Letters3
Frequency rank#43,170
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Corpus-Rang neben Verwechslern von „fem“

Von links nach rechts: die wenigen Träger des Alltags, dann der lange Schwanz kaum gebrauchter Formen.femliegt auf dieser Marke:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Die Achse ist logarithmisch: jeder Tick markiert etwa zehnfach geringere Häufigkeit. Peers derselben Seltenheitsbandbreite: „Fehlentscheidung“ (#43,169), „Ferienhäuser“ (#43,171), „Fallschirmjäger“ (#43,168). Unter 3,474 „F“-Lemmata liegt „fem“ bei #43,170. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for fem is neighbouring look-alikes ("fi", "FH", …), not just typos; it is anumeral pronounced [fɛmˀ]. Frequency #43,170 among 3,474 “F” headwords. Gloss: "fünf".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for fem, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable German rules. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "fi", "FH", "fl", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct German form is fem, spelled F-E-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    fünf

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how fem appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Jeg var fem dage i Paris.

This word in other languages

five(English)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 German corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "fem"?
"fem" is spelled F-E-M. The IPA pronunciation is [fɛmˀ].
What does "fem" mean?
As a numeral, "fem" means: fünf
What words are commonly confused with "fem"?
"fem" is commonly confused with "fi", "FH", "fl". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "fem"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fem" is [fɛmˀ]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "fem" come from?
"fem" is a German word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar German words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "fem", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

fil#43,176Ede#43,118hom#43,252HTL#43,254

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list