Which to use
“hängen” is a verb and “hängende” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,114
- “hängen” frequency rank
- #35,843
- “hängende” frequency rank
- 37957
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hängen | hängende |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | an einem festen Punkt (durch das Eigengewicht nach unten baumelnd) befestigen | Nominativ Singular Femininum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs hängend |
Where the eye mixes hängen and hängende
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. hängen runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against hängende's 8 (CVCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between hängen and hängende
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hängen is [ˈhɛŋən] while hängende is [ˈhɛŋəndə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “hängen” sits inside “hängende”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37957, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hängen is recorded at frequency rank #2,114, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈhɛŋən]. hängende is at rank #35,843, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈhɛŋəndə].
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 37957, this pair ranks #1,576,640 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of hängen vs hängende
Shared letters: eghnä. Private to "hängen": -. Private to "hängende": d.
"hängen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "hängende" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "hängen" and "hängende" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "hängen" vs "hängende" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "hängen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "hängende" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,576,640 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "hängen" and "hängende" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "handelnde vs hängende". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,576,640 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.