büßen

[ˈbyːsn̩]

/[ˈbyːsn̩]/ verb

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency German
5
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - nachdem man schuldig geworden ist, eine Strafe auf sich nehmen (die einem möglicherweise Geschädigten nicht dient)

Corpus desk

Index DE-bu-en · büßen · German

büßen · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "B" 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 büßen
PropertyValue
Headwordbüßen
LanguageGerman
Part of speechVerb
IPA[ˈbyːsn̩]
Letters5
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „büßen“ im Deutschen

büßensitzt jenseits der 100.000 häufigsten deutschen Formen, im Schwanz spezialisierten oder seltenen Wortschatzes.

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

Rare enough to double-check

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

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for büßen, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct German form is büßen, spelled B-Ü-S-S-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    nachdem man schuldig geworden ist, eine Strafe auf sich nehmen (die einem möglicherweise Geschädigten nicht dient)
  2. 2
    einem Geschädigten Wiedergutmachung leisten
  3. 3
    mit einer Buße belegen

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Dafür sollst du mit Nachsitzen büßen!
  2. Mit dieser Zahlung hat er die Schädigung reichlich gebüßt.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

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 "büßen"?
"büßen" is spelled B-Ü-SS-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈbyːsn̩].
What does "büßen" mean?
As a verb, "büßen" means: nachdem man schuldig geworden ist, eine Strafe auf sich nehmen (die einem möglicherweise Geschädigten nicht dient)
How do you pronounce "büßen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "büßen" is [ˈbyːsn̩]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "büßen" come from?
"büßen" 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