hakvshearWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“hak” and “hear” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#38,795
“hak” frequency rank
#34,155
“hear” frequency rank
72950
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature hak hear
Definition 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs haken hören; mit dem Gehör wahrnehmen

Where the spellings diverge

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

3 ch
hak
4 ch
hear

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. hak ([haːk]) and hear ([hɪə(ɹ)]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 72950, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hak is recorded at frequency rank #38,795, classified as averb, pronounced [haːk]. hear is at rank #34,155, tagged as averb, pronounced [hɪə(ɹ)].

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 72950, this pair ranks #373,918 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of hak vs hear

Shared letters: ah. Private to "hak": k. Private to "hear": er.

"hak" · 3 letters · shape CVC  ·  "hear" · 4 letters · shape CVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • hearehar · haer · hearr · hhear

Frequency comparison

hak#38,795
hear#34,155

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "hak" and "hear" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([haːk] versus [hɪə(ɹ)]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "hak" or "hear"?
"hear" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #34,155 in our German list, against #38,795 for "hak". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering hak vs hear

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “hak” 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