hungernvsHunnenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: hungern is a verb, Hunnen is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“hungern” is a verb and “Hunnen” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#18,930
“hungern” frequency rank
#41,907
“Hunnen” frequency rank
60837
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature hungern Hunnen
Definition Hunger haben, hungrig sein Genitiv Singular des Substantivs Hunne

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set hungern and Hunnen apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
hungern
6 ch
Hunnen

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hungern is [ˈhʊŋɐn] while Hunnen is [ˈhʊnən]. 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 noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60837, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hungern is recorded at frequency rank #18,930, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈhʊŋɐn]. Hunnen is at rank #41,907, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈhʊnən].

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 60837, this pair ranks #772,108 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of hungern vs Hunnen

Shared letters: ehnu. Private to "hungern": gr. Private to "Hunnen": -.

"hungern" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC  ·  "Hunnen" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • hungernhhungern · hnugern · hugnern · hunegrn · hungenr · hungernn · hungerrn · hunggern
  • Hunnenhhunnen · hnunen · hunen · hunenn · hunnenn · hunnne · uhnnen

Frequency comparison

hungern#18,930
Hunnen#41,907

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "hungern" and "Hunnen" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "hungern" is a verb and "Hunnen" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "hungern" or "Hunnen"?
"hungern" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #18,930 in our German list, against #41,907 for "Hunnen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering hungern vs Hunnen

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “hungern”; for a noun, it's “Hunnen”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “hungern” 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