HagelvshampelWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Hagel is a noun, hampel is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

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

#20,284
“Hagel” frequency rank
#43,238
“hampel” frequency rank
63522
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Hagel hampel
Definition aus meist kleinen Eisklumpen bestehender Niederschlag 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs hampeln

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Hagel and hampel apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
Hagel
6 ch
hampel

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Hagel is [ˈhaːɡl̩] while hampel is [ˈhampl̩]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63522, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Hagel is recorded at frequency rank #20,284, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈhaːɡl̩]. hampel is at rank #43,238, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈhampl̩].

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 63522, this pair ranks #673,836 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Hagel vs hampel

Shared letters: aehl. Private to "Hagel": g. Private to "hampel": mp.

"Hagel" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "hampel" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Hagelahgel · haegl · hagell · haggel · hagle · hgael · hhagel
  • hampelahmpel · hamepl · hammpel · hampell · hample · hamppel · hapmel · hhampel

Frequency comparison

Hagel#20,284
hampel#43,238

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Hagel" and "hampel" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Hagel" is a noun and "hampel" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Hagel" or "hampel"?
"Hagel" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #20,284 in our German list, against #43,238 for "hampel". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Hagel vs hampel

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list