Which to use
“Hälfte” is a noun and “härte” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #905
- “Hälfte” frequency rank
- #9,738
- “härte” frequency rank
- 10643
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Hälfte | härte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | einer von zwei gleich großen Anteilen | 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs härten |
Where the eye mixes Hälfte and härte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. Hälfte runs 6 letters (CVCCCV) against härte's 5 (CVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses Hälfte with härte
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Hälfte is [ˈhɛlftə] while härte is [ˈhɛʁtə]. 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 10643, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Hälfte is recorded at frequency rank #905, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈhɛlftə]. härte is at rank #9,738, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈhɛʁtə].
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 10643, this pair ranks #1,974,077 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Hälfte vs härte
Shared letters: ehtä. Private to "Hälfte": fl. Private to "härte": r.
"Hälfte" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV · "härte" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Hälfte" for "härte" ever safe?
Which is more common, "Hälfte" or "härte"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Hälfte" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "härte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,974,077 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Hälfte" and "härte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Hähne vs härte". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,974,077 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.