-au

[-aʊ̯]

/[-aʊ̯]/ name

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“-au” is uncommon German (outside the top frequency list), classed as a proper noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency German
3
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Ortsnamengrundwort für Niederungen und Siedlungen an Niederungen sowie Landschaften, die von Niederungen geprägt sind

Corpus desk

Index DE-au · -au · German

-au · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "-" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for -au
PropertyValue
Headword-au
LanguageGerman
Part of speechProper noun
IPA[-aʊ̯]
Letters3
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „-au“ im Deutschen

-auliegt außerhalb der 100.000 häufigsten deutschen Wörter, im Langschwanz technischer, archaischer oder seltener Formen, genau dort, wo Schreibzweifeln zuschlagen.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

-au is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as aproper noun, transcribed [-aʊ̯]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for -au in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct German form is -au, spelled --A-U.

Definition

  1. 1
    Ortsnamengrundwort für Niederungen und Siedlungen an Niederungen sowie Landschaften, die von Niederungen geprägt sind
  2. 2
    Ortsnamengrundwort für Inseln und Siedlungen auf Inseln
  3. 3
    Ortsnamengrundwort für fließende Gewässer, kleinere Flüsse und Siedlungen an fließenden Gewässern

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how -au appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Ramsau ist Name verschiedener Gemeinden und Ortsteile.
  2. Mainau liegt im Bodensee.

Synonyms

-aue

This word in other languages

-ey(English)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "-au"?
"-au" is spelled --A-U. The IPA pronunciation is [-aʊ̯].
What does "-au" mean?
As a proper noun, "-au" means: Ortsnamengrundwort für Niederungen und Siedlungen an Niederungen sowie Landschaften, die von Niederungen geprägt sind
How do you pronounce "-au"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "-au" is [-aʊ̯]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "-au" come from?
"-au" 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list