hastigvshäufigWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#31,600
“hastig” frequency rank
#813
“häufig” frequency rank
32413
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature hastig häufig
Definition zu schnell und ohne Sorgfalt, genaue Überlegung oder große Vorbereitung; in großer Eile vielfach vorkommend, viele Male, immer wieder auftretend

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
hastig
6 ch
häufig

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. hastig ([ˈhastɪç]) and häufig ([ˈhɔɪ̯fɪç]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32413, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hastig is recorded at frequency rank #31,600, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈhastɪç]. häufig is at rank #813, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈhɔɪ̯fɪç].

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 32413, this pair ranks #1,708,109 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of hastig vs häufig

Shared letters: ghi. Private to "hastig": ast. Private to "häufig": fuä.

"hastig" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "häufig" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • hastigahstig · hasitg · hasstig · hastgi · hastigg · hasttig · hatsig · hhastig

Frequency comparison

hastig#31,600
häufig#813

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "hastig" and "häufig" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈhastɪç] versus [ˈhɔɪ̯fɪç]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "hastig" or "häufig"?
"häufig" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #813 in our German list, against #31,600 for "hastig". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering hastig vs häufig

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 “hastig” 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