Which to use
“fail” and “feel” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,441
- “fail” frequency rank
- #201
- “feel” frequency rank
- 2642
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fail | feel |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To be unsuccessful. | To use or experience the sense of touch. |
Where the eye mixes fail and feel
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. fail (/feɪl/) and feel (/fiːl/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2642, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fail is recorded at frequency rank #2,441, classified as averb, pronounced /feɪl/. feel is at rank #201, tagged as averb, pronounced /fiːl/.
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 2642, this pair ranks #524,442 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fail vs feel
Shared letters: fl. Private to "fail": ai. Private to "feel": e.
"fail" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "feel" · 4 letters · shape CVVC