Heroin

[heʁoˈiːn]

/[heʁoˈiːn]/ noun

The verdict

“Heroin” is a moderately-common German word, ranked #12,301 in German word frequency and used as a noun.

#12,301
frequency rank, German
6
letters
8
tracked misspellings
18
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Rauschgift; ein als Arzneimittel entwickeltes Morphinderivat

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

Heroin vs Herrn
67% similar
Heroin vs Herren
67% similar
Heroin vs Herzen
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for Heroin
PropertyValue
HeadwordHeroin
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[heʁoˈiːn]
Letters6
Frequency rank#12,301
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs18
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Heroin” sits in German frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). Heroin lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The German entry for Heroin is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [heʁoˈiːn]. Corpus data places it at rank #12,301 in overall German word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Rauschgift; ein als Arzneimittel entwickeltes Morphinderivat".

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for Heroin, with forms such as "ehroin", "heorin", and "herion". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 18 confusable-pair relationships, "Herrn", "Herren", "Herzen", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct German form is Heroin, spelled H-E-R-O-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Rauschgift; ein als Arzneimittel entwickeltes Morphinderivat

Synonyms

DiacetylmorphinDiamorphinHorse

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ehroin,heorin,herion,heroinn,heroni,herroin,hheroin,hreoin

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Heroin - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ehroin2heorin2herion2heroinn1heroni2herroin1hheroin1hreoin2
Edit distance from "Heroin"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 German corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "Heroin"?
"Heroin" is spelled H-E-R-O-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is [heʁoˈiːn].
What does "Heroin" mean?
As a noun, "Heroin" means: Rauschgift; ein als Arzneimittel entwickeltes Morphinderivat
What words are commonly confused with "Heroin"?
"Heroin" is commonly confused with "Herrn", "Herren", "Herzen". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Heroin"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Heroin" is [heʁoˈiːn]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Heroin" come from?
"Heroin" is a German word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “Heroin”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct German spelling is H-E-R-O-I-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [heʁoˈiːn] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “Herrn” - see the side-by-side comparison. Heroin vs Herrn
  • Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list