Fettnäpfchen

Name: Fettnäpfchen, German Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

[ˈfɛtˌnɛp͡fçən]

/[ˈfɛtˌnɛp͡fçən]/ noun

By PlainSpell · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed September 3, 2026

The verdict

“Fettnäpfchen” has 18 generated spelling variants in the German index at frequency #41,807. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#41,807
frequency rank, German: 3,474
“F” headwords: 18
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - ein kleines, mit Fett gefülltes Gefäß, das früher häufig zum Stiefelputzen neben der Tür oder dem Herd stand

Corpus desk

Index DE-fettnapfchen · Fettnäpfchen · German

Fettnäpfchen · rank #41,807 · 18 variants · 0 confusables

FREQ-MID #41,807
LEN-MEGA 12 letters
VOW-3 3 vowels
CONFUS-0 No pairs
VAR-HIGH 18 variants
BOOK-MID 3,474
PHOTO-FINISH festhielt

Nearest frequency peer: festhielt (-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.

feindlicher

58,198
Feinschmeck…

58,197
festhielt

58,195
Fettnäpfchen

58,194
Filmaufnahm…

58,192
flirtet

58,190

What this shows „Fettnäpfchen“ sitzt unter diesen FrequencyWords-Peers; die Tippfehlertiefe steht separat im Edit-Distance-Chart.

Key facts for Fettnäpfchen
Property	Value
Headword	Fettnäpfchen
Language	German
Part of speech	Noun
IPA	[ˈfɛtˌnɛp͡fçən]
Letters	12
Frequency rank	#41,807
Misspellings tracked	18
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Häufigkeitslage von Tippfehler-Magnet „Fettnäpfchen“

Die Häufigkeit läuft von den wenigen Alltagswörtern (links) bis zur langen, seltenen Schwanzseite (rechts).Fettnäpfchenliegt hier neben dem Tippfehler-Druck:

#41,807

#1#100#1K#10K#100K

← used constantlyrarely used →

Die Skala ist logarithmisch (jeder Tick ≈ 10× seltener). Peers derselben Seltenheitsbandbreite: „festhielt“ (#41,806), „Filmaufnahmen“ (#41,809), „Feinschmecker“ (#41,804). Unter 3,474 „F“-Lemmata liegt „Fettnäpfchen“ bei #41,807. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 18 spelling variants around Fettnäpfchen (IPA [ˈfɛtˌnɛp͡fçən]), anoun. Corpus frequency is #41,807 among 3,474 “F” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 18 likely wrong-spelling variants for Fettnäpfchen, with forms such as "efttnäpfchen", "fetntäpfchen", and "fetnäpfchen". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct German form is Fettnäpfchen, spelled F-E-T-T-N-Ä-P-F-C-H-E-N.

Definition

1
ein kleines, mit Fett gefülltes Gefäß, das früher häufig zum Stiefelputzen neben der Tür oder dem Herd stand
2
peinliche Situation, in der man eine andere Person unabsichtlich kränkt oder verärgert

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

Früher stand neben dem Schuhregal stets ein Fettnäpfchen.
Fritz hat mal wieder kein Fettnäpfchen ausgelassen.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

efttnäpfchen
fetntäpfchen
fetnäpfchen
fettnnäpfchen
fettnpäfchen
fettnäfpchen
fettnäpcfhen
fettnäpfcchen
fettnäpfcehn
fettnäpfchenn
fettnäpfchhen
fettnäpfchne
fettnäpffchen
fettnäpfhcen
fettnäppfchen
fettänpfchen
ffettnäpfchen
ftetnäpfchen

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Fettnäpfchen - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

Edit distance from "Fettnäpfchen"

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 "Fettnäpfchen"?

"Fettnäpfchen" is spelled F-E-T-T-N-Ä-P-F-C-H-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈfɛtˌnɛp͡fçən].

What does "Fettnäpfchen" mean?

As a noun, "Fettnäpfchen" means: ein kleines, mit Fett gefülltes Gefäß, das früher häufig zum Stiefelputzen neben der Tür oder dem Herd stand

What are common misspellings of "Fettnäpfchen"?

Common misspellings include "efttnäpfchen", "fetntäpfchen", "fetnäpfchen", "fettnnäpfchen", "fettnpäfchen". The correct spelling is "Fettnäpfchen".

How do you pronounce "Fettnäpfchen"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Fettnäpfchen" is [ˈfɛtˌnɛp͡fçən]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.

What language does "Fettnäpfchen" come from?

"Fettnäpfchen" is a German word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.

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 "Fettnäpfchen", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 12 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Familienname#41,799 Fachwerkhaus#41,796 erschütterte#41,787 erfreulichen#41,784

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (18 here; floor ≥5).

Gefangennahme18 variants Eiskunstlauf18 variants gesteigerten18 variants Grenzgänger18 variants