hörtevshurtWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#3,195
“hörte” frequency rank
#43,976
“hurt” frequency rank
47171
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature hörte hurt
Definition 1. Person Singular Indikativ Präteritum Aktiv des Verbs hören 2. Person Plural Imperativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs huren

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
hörte
4 ch
hurt

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. hörte ([ˈhøːɐ̯tə]) and hurt ([huːɐ̯t]) 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 47171, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hörte is recorded at frequency rank #3,195, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈhøːɐ̯tə]. hurt is at rank #43,976, tagged as averb, pronounced [huːɐ̯t].

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 47171, this pair ranks #1,293,756 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of hörte vs hurt

Shared letters: hrt. Private to "hörte": . Private to "hurt": u.

"hörte" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "hurt" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • hurthhurt · hrut · hurrt · hurtt · hutr · uhrt

Frequency comparison

hörte#3,195
hurt#43,976

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "hörte" and "hurt" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈhøːɐ̯tə] versus [huːɐ̯t]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "hörte" or "hurt"?
"hörte" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,195 in our German list, against #43,976 for "hurt". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering hörte vs hurt

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “hörte” 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