Which to use
“herbe” is an adjective and “Hexe” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #32,086
- “herbe” frequency rank
- #11,254
- “Hexe” frequency rank
- 43340
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | herbe | Hexe |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Singular Femininum Positiv der starken Flexion des Adjektivs herb | weibliches, bösgesinntes und dämonisches Märchen- oder Sagenwesen zumeist in Gestalt einer hässlichen, zauberkräftigen Greisin mit einem Buckel und einer langen, krummen Nase, die Schadenszauber auf den Menschen ausüben kann und mit dem Teufel durch einen Pakt oder Buhlschaft verbündet ist |
Where the eye mixes herbe and Hexe
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses herbe with Hexe
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: herbe is [ˈhɛʁbə] while Hexe is [ˈhɛksə]. 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 noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43340, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
herbe is recorded at frequency rank #32,086, classified as anadj, pronounced [ˈhɛʁbə]. Hexe is at rank #11,254, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈhɛksə].
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 43340, this pair ranks #1,421,164 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of herbe vs Hexe
Shared letters: eh. Private to "herbe": br. Private to "Hexe": x.
"herbe" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "Hexe" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "herbe" and "Hexe" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "herbe" or "Hexe"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "herbe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Hexe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,421,164 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "herbe" and "Hexe" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "hegte vs herbe". 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 #1,421,164 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.