hinvsHofTell them apart

Quick tell: hin is a adverb, Hof is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“hin” is an adverb and “Hof” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#327
“hin” frequency rank
#1,773
“Hof” frequency rank
2100
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature hin Hof
Definition drückt die Richtung zu einer bestimmten Stelle oder einem Zeitpunkt aus umgrenzter Platz, Wirtschafts- und Verkehrsfläche auf einem Grundstück, in der Regel von Gebäuden umschlossen oder hinter, vor oder zwischen Gebäuden gelegen

Where the eye mixes hin and Hof

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.

3 ch
hin
3 ch
Hof

Look-alike desk: hin vs Hof

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hin is [hɪn] while Hof is [hoːf]. 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 (adverb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2100, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hin is recorded at frequency rank #327, classified as anadv, pronounced [hɪn]. Hof is at rank #1,773, tagged as anoun, pronounced [hoːf].

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 2100, this pair ranks #2,003,104 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of hin vs Hof

Shared letters: h. Private to "hin": in. Private to "Hof": fo.

"hin" · 3 letters · shape CVC  ·  "Hof" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "hin" for "Hof" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "hin" is an adverb and "Hof" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "hin" vs "Hof" - which ranks higher?
"hin" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #327 in our German list, against #1,773 for "Hof". 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 "hin" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "Hof" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #2,003,104 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "hin" and "Hof" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Hof vs höh". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #2,003,104 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