Which to use
“Hafen” is a noun and “holen” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,532
- “Hafen” frequency rank
- #1,328
- “holen” frequency rank
- 4860
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Hafen | holen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | natürliches oder künstlich angelegtes Wasserbecken für Schiffe am Meeresrand oder an Binnenwasserwegen, um dort zu liegen und zu ankern, mit Anlagen zum Löschen, Laden, Reinigen und Ausbessern | etwas oder jemanden herbeischaffen |
Where the eye mixes Hafen and holen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Hafen is [ˈhaːfn̩] while holen is [ˈhoːlən]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4860, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Hafen is recorded at frequency rank #3,532, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈhaːfn̩]. holen is at rank #1,328, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈhoːlən].
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 4860, this pair ranks #1,996,458 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Hafen vs holen
Shared letters: ehn. Private to "Hafen": af. Private to "holen": lo.
"Hafen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "holen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "Hafen" and "holen" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "Hafen" or "holen"?
What to do next
You've compared "Hafen" and "holen". Here's where to go from here.
- Full dictionary entry for "Hafen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "holen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,996,458 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Hafen" and "holen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Hafen vs haze". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.