heckenvshinkenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#21,640
“hecken” frequency rank
#34,733
“hinken” frequency rank
56373
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature hecken hinken
Definition etwas ausbrüten, hervorbringen (auch in großer Anzahl), mehr werden (besonders bei Geld) schaukelnd gehen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set hecken and hinken apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
hecken
6 ch
hinken

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. hecken ([ˈhɛkn̩]) and hinken ([ˈhɪŋkn̩]) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56373, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hecken is recorded at frequency rank #21,640, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈhɛkn̩]. hinken is at rank #34,733, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈhɪŋkn̩].

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 56373, this pair ranks #942,729 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of hecken vs hinken

Shared letters: ehkn. Private to "hecken": c. Private to "hinken": i.

"hecken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "hinken" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • heckenehcken · hceken · heccken · hecekn · heckenn · heckken · heckne · hekcen
  • hinkenhhinken · hiknen · hinekn · hinkenn · hinkken · hinkne · hinnken · hniken

Frequency comparison

hecken#21,640
hinken#34,733

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "hecken" and "hinken" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈhɛkn̩] versus [ˈhɪŋkn̩]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "hecken" or "hinken"?
"hecken" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,640 in our German list, against #34,733 for "hinken". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering hecken vs hinken

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 “hecken” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list