hierzuvshinzuWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#2,600
“hierzu” frequency rank
#1,735
“hinzu” frequency rank
4335
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature hierzu hinzu
Definition in diesem Fall, zu diesem Zweck (noch) zusätzlich zu einer Sache, einem Vorgang, einem Zustand

Where the eye mixes hierzu and hinzu

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. hierzu runs 6 letters (CVVCCV) against hinzu's 5 (CVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
hierzu
5 ch
hinzu

Visual trap between hierzu and hinzu

A purely visual mix-up. hierzu ([ˈhiːɐ̯ˈt͡suː]) and hinzu ([hɪnˈt͡suː]) 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 4335, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hierzu is recorded at frequency rank #2,600, classified as anadv, pronounced [ˈhiːɐ̯ˈt͡suː]. hinzu is at rank #1,735, tagged as anadv, pronounced [hɪnˈt͡suː].

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 4335, this pair ranks #1,997,990 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of hierzu vs hinzu

Shared letters: hiuz. Private to "hierzu": er. Private to "hinzu": n.

"hierzu" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV  ·  "hinzu" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • hierzuheirzu · hhierzu · hierrzu · hieruz · hierzzu · hiezru · hirezu · iherzu
  • hinzuhhinzu · hinnzu · hinuz · hinzzu · hiznu · hnizu · ihnzu

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "hierzu" and "hinzu" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈhiːɐ̯ˈt͡suː] versus [hɪnˈt͡suː]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "hierzu" or "hinzu"?
"hinzu" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,735 in our German list, against #2,600 for "hierzu". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "hierzu" and "hinzu" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "hierzu" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "hinzu" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #1,997,990 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "hierzu" and "hinzu" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Hindi vs hinzu". 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 #1,997,990 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