Which to use
“hoffen” is a verb and “hohen” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,811
- “hoffen” frequency rank
- #858
- “hohen” frequency rank
- 2669
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hoffen | hohen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | zuversichtlich erwarten, in die Zukunft vertrauen | Genitiv Singular Maskulinum der starken Flexion des Adjektivs hoch |
Where the eye mixes hoffen and hohen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: hoffen vs hohen
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hoffen is [ˈhɔfn̩] while hohen is [ˈhoːən]. 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 (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2669, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hoffen is recorded at frequency rank #1,811, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈhɔfn̩]. hohen is at rank #858, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈhoːən].
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 2669, this pair ranks #2,001,839 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of hoffen vs hohen
Shared letters: ehno. Private to "hoffen": f. Private to "hohen": -.
"hoffen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "hohen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "hoffen" and "hohen" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "hoffen" or "hohen"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "hoffen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "hohen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #2,001,839 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "hoffen" and "hohen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "hoffen vs hoffst". 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 #2,001,839 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.