hetztvsHitzeWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: hetzt is a verb, Hitze is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“hetzt” is a verb and “Hitze” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#23,563
“hetzt” frequency rank
#3,745
“Hitze” frequency rank
27308
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature hetzt Hitze
Definition 2. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs hetzen hohe, als unangenehm empfundene Wärme

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set hetzt and Hitze apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
hetzt
5 ch
Hitze

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hetzt is [hɛt͡st] while Hitze is [ˈhɪt͡sə]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27308, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hetzt is recorded at frequency rank #23,563, classified as averb, pronounced [hɛt͡st]. Hitze is at rank #3,745, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈhɪt͡sə].

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 27308, this pair ranks #1,803,887 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of hetzt vs Hitze

Shared letters: ehtz. Private to "hetzt": -. Private to "Hitze": i.

"hetzt" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC  ·  "Hitze" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • hetztehtzt · hettz · hettzt · hetztt · hetzzt · heztt · hhetzt · htezt
  • Hitzehhitze · hitez · hittze · hitzze · hizte · htize · ihtze

Frequency comparison

hetzt#23,563
Hitze#3,745

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "hetzt" and "Hitze" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "hetzt" is a verb and "Hitze" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "hetzt" or "Hitze"?
"Hitze" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,745 in our German list, against #23,563 for "hetzt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering hetzt vs Hitze

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “hetzt”; for a noun, it's “Hitze”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “hetzt” 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