Which to use
“Höfe” is a noun and “hör” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #16,734
- “Höfe” frequency rank
- #2,601
- “hör” frequency rank
- 19335
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Höfe | hör |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nominativ Plural des Substantivs Hof | 2. Person Singular Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs hören |
Where the eye mixes Höfe and hör
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. Höfe runs 4 letters (CVCV) against hör's 3 (CVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses Höfe with hör
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Höfe is [ˈhøːfə] while hör is [høːɐ̯]. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 19335, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Höfe is recorded at frequency rank #16,734, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈhøːfə]. hör is at rank #2,601, tagged as averb, pronounced [høːɐ̯].
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 19335, this pair ranks #1,909,442 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Höfe vs hör
Shared letters: hö. Private to "Höfe": ef. Private to "hör": r.
"Höfe" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "hör" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Höfe" for "hör" ever safe?
In ordinary German text, does "Höfe" or "hör" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Höfe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "hör" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,909,442 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Höfe" and "hör" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "haze vs Höfe". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #1,909,442 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.