hilflos
[ˈhɪlfloːs]
The verdict
“hilflos” is a moderately-common German word, ranked #11,256 in German word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #11,256
- frequency rank, German
- 7
- letters
- 11
- tracked misspellings
- 3
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - nicht in der Lage, allein zurechtzukommen/sich selbst zu helfen; auf Hilfe angewiesen
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | hilflos |
| Language | German |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | [ˈhɪlfloːs] |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #11,256 |
| Misspellings tracked | 11 |
| Confusable pairs | 3 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “hilflos” sits in German frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The German entry for hilflos is 7 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈhɪlfloːs]. Corpus data places it at rank #11,256 in overall German word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for hilflos, with forms such as "hhilflos", "hifllos", and "hilfflos". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 3 confusable-pair relationships, "hilflose", "hilflosen", "haltlos", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct German form is hilflos, spelled H-I-L-F-L-O-S.
Definition
- 1nicht in der Lage, allein zurechtzukommen/sich selbst zu helfen; auf Hilfe angewiesen
- 2nicht in der Lage, jemandem zu helfen
- 3intellektuell überfordert
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: hhilflos,hifllos,hilfflos,hilfllos,hilfloss,hilflso,hilfols,hillflos,hillfos,hliflos,ihlflos
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of hilflos - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
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 "hilflos"?
What does "hilflos" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "hilflos"?
How do you pronounce "hilflos"?
What language does "hilflos" come from?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “hilflos”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct German spelling is H-I-L-F-L-O-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as [ˈhɪlfloːs] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “hilflose” - see the side-by-side comparison. hilflos vs hilflose
- 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.