Which to use
“heil” is an adjective and “hoi” is an intj - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,208
- “heil” frequency rank
- #41,901
- “hoi” frequency rank
- 46109
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | heil | hoi |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | nicht zerbrochen; unversehrt; nicht verletzt | Ausruf des (freudigen) Erstaunens |
Where the eye mixes heil and hoi
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. heil runs 4 letters (CVVC) against hoi's 3 (CVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between heil and hoi
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: heil is [haɪ̯l] while hoi is [hɔɪ̯]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs intj), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46109, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
heil is recorded at frequency rank #4,208, classified as anadj, pronounced [haɪ̯l]. hoi is at rank #41,901, tagged as anintj, pronounced [hɔɪ̯].
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 46109, this pair ranks #1,330,325 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of heil vs hoi
Shared letters: hi. Private to "heil": el. Private to "hoi": o.
"heil" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "hoi" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- heil ← ehil · heill · hheil · hiel
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "heil" and "hoi" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "heil" or "hoi"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "heil" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "hoi" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,330,325 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "heil" and "hoi" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "höh vs hoi". 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 #1,330,325 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.