hängte vs hatte, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#42,582
“hängte” frequency rank: #91
“hatte” frequency rank: 42673
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	hängte	hatte
Definition	1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs hängen	1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs haben

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set hängte and hatte apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch

hängte

5 ch

hatte

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. hängte ([ˈhɛŋtə]) and hatte ([ˈhatə]) 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 42673, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hängte is recorded at frequency rank #42,582, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈhɛŋtə]. hatte is at rank #91, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈhatə].

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 42673, this pair ranks #1,442,133 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of hängte vs hatte

Shared letters: eht. Private to "hängte": gnä. Private to "hatte": a.

"hängte" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV · "hatte" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

hatte ← ahtte · hate · hatet · hhatte · htate

Frequency comparison

hängte#42,582

hatte#91

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "hängte" and "hatte" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently ([ˈhɛŋtə] versus [ˈhatə]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "hängte" or "hatte"?

"hatte" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #91 in our German list, against #42,582 for "hängte". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering hängte vs hatte

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 “hängte” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable