fotzen
[ˈfɔt͡sn̩]
The verdict
“fotzen” is a moderately-common German word, ranked #17,895 in German word frequency and used as a verb.
- #17,895
- frequency rank, German
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 11
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - mit der flachen Hand auf die Backe schlagen
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | fotzen |
| Language | German |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | [ˈfɔt͡sn̩] |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #17,895 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 11 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “fotzen” sits in German frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The German entry for fotzen is 6 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈfɔt͡sn̩]. Corpus data places it at rank #17,895 in overall German word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "mit der flachen Hand auf die Backe schlagen".
Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for fotzen, with forms such as "ffotzen", "fotezn", and "fottzen". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 11 confusable-pair relationships, "frozen", "Fotze", "Foren", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.
This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct German form is fotzen, spelled F-O-T-Z-E-N.
Definition
- 1mit der flachen Hand auf die Backe schlagen
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ffotzen,fotezn,fottzen,fotzenn,fotzne,fotzzen,fozten,ftozen,oftzen
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of fotzen - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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 "fotzen"?
What does "fotzen" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "fotzen"?
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Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “fotzen”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct German spelling is F-O-T-Z-E-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as [ˈfɔt͡sn̩] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “frozen” - see the side-by-side comparison. fotzen vs frozen
- Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.