hängevshängstWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#10,304
“hänge” frequency rank
#30,123
“hängst” frequency rank
40427
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature hänge hängst
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs hängen 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs hängen

Where the eye mixes hänge and hängst

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. hänge runs 5 letters (CVCCV) against hängst's 6 (CVCCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

5 ch
hänge
6 ch
hängst

Look-alike desk: hänge vs hängst

A purely visual mix-up. hänge ([ˈhɛŋə]) and hängst ([hɛŋst]) 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 40427, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hänge is recorded at frequency rank #10,304, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈhɛŋə]. hängst is at rank #30,123, tagged as averb, pronounced [hɛŋst].

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 40427, this pair ranks #1,508,809 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of hänge vs hängst

Shared letters: ghnä. Private to "hänge": e. Private to "hängst": st.

"hänge" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "hängst" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "hänge" and "hängst" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈhɛŋə] versus [hɛŋst]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "hänge" or "hängst"?
"hänge" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,304 in our German list, against #30,123 for "hängst". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "hänge" and "hängst" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "hänge" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "hängst" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,508,809 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "hänge" and "hängst" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "hängst vs Hengste". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #1,508,809 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list