fil vs fis, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“fil” is a noun and “fis” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#38,124
“fil” frequency rank: #37,094
“fis” frequency rank: 75218
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	fil	fis
Definition	Elefante.	Primera persona del singular (je) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de faire.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set fil and fis apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch

fil

3 ch

fis

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: fil is [ˈfil] while fis is [fi]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - l in “fil” becomes s in “fis”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 75218, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fil is recorded at frequency rank #38,124, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈfil]. fis is at rank #37,094, tagged as averb, pronounced [fi].

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 75218, this pair ranks #19,984 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of fil vs fis

Shared letters: fi. Private to "fil": l. Private to "fis": s.

"fil" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "fis" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequency comparison

fil#38,124

fis#37,094

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fil" and "fis" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "fil" is a noun and "fis" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "fil" or "fis"?

"fis" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #37,094 in our Spanish list, against #38,124 for "fil". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering fil vs fis

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “fil”; for a verb, it's “fis”.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “fil” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable