Which to use
“hein” is an intj and “het” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #687
- “hein” frequency rank
- #17,730
- “het” frequency rank
- 18417
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hein | het |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Dont on accompagne une interrogation ou une phrase qui exprime l’étonnement. | Variante de hèt. |
Where the eye mixes hein and het
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses hein with het
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hein is \ɛ̃\ while het is ^((h aspiré))\ɛt\. 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 (intj vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18417, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hein is recorded at frequency rank #687, classified as anintj, pronounced \ɛ̃\. het is at rank #17,730, tagged as anoun, pronounced ^((h aspiré))\ɛt\.
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 18417, this pair ranks #378,426 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of hein vs het
Shared letters: eh. Private to "hein": in. Private to "het": t.
"hein" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "het" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- hein ← ehin · heinn · heni · hhein · hien
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "hein" and "het" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "hein" vs "het" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "hein" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "het" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #378,426 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "hein" and "het" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "hae vs het". 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 #378,426 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.