Which to use
“Hehl” and “hells” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #33,632
- “Hehl” frequency rank
- #34,160
- “hells” frequency rank
- 67792
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Hehl | hells |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | etwas verheimlichen, verbergen (meist verneint) | Plural des Substantivs hell |
Where the eye mixes Hehl and hells
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses Hehl with hells
A purely visual mix-up. Hehl ([heːl]) and hells ([hɛlz]) 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 67792, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Hehl is recorded at frequency rank #33,632, classified as anoun, pronounced [heːl]. hells is at rank #34,160, tagged as anoun, pronounced [hɛlz].
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 67792, this pair ranks #528,611 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Hehl vs hells
Shared letters: ehl. Private to "Hehl": -. Private to "hells": s.
"Hehl" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "hells" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Hehl" and "hells" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "Hehl" or "hells" show up more?
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 "Hehl" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "hells" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #528,611 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Hehl" and "hells" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "heel vs hells". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #528,611 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.