heiterenvshinterenConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#36,385
“heiteren” frequency rank
#6,933
“hinteren” frequency rank
43318
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature heiteren hinteren
Definition Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs heiter Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Deklination des Positivs des Adjektivs hinter

Where the eye mixes heiteren and hinteren

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. heiteren (CVVCVCVC) and hinteren (CVCCVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

8 ch
heiteren
8 ch
hinteren

Look-alike desk: heiteren vs hinteren

A purely visual mix-up. heiteren ([ˈhaɪ̯təʁən]) and hinteren ([ˈhɪntəʁən]) 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 43318, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

heiteren is recorded at frequency rank #36,385, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈhaɪ̯təʁən]. hinteren is at rank #6,933, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈhɪntəʁən].

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 43318, this pair ranks #1,421,806 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of heiteren vs hinteren

Shared letters: ehinrt. Private to "heiteren": -. Private to "hinteren": -.

"heiteren" · 8 letters · shape CVVCVCVC  ·  "hinteren" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • heiteren ← ehiteren · heietren · heiteern · heiterenn · heiterne · heiterren · heitreen · heitteren
  • hinteren ← hhinteren · hinetren · hinnteren · hinteern · hinterenn · hinterne · hinterren · hintreen

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "heiteren" and "hinteren" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈhaɪ̯təʁən] versus [ˈhɪntəʁən]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "heiteren" vs "hinteren" - which ranks higher?
"hinteren" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,933 in our German list, against #36,385 for "heiteren". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "heiteren" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "hinteren" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,421,806 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "heiteren" and "hinteren" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "härteren vs heiteren". 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 #1,421,806 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list