danke

[ˈdaŋkə]

/[ˈdaŋkə]/ particle

The verdict

“danke” is in the everyday core of German, ranked #212 in German word frequency and used as a particle.

#212
frequency rank, German
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Wort, das man benutzt, um seinen Dank auszudrücken

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

danke vs dann
60% similar
danke vs denk
60% similar
danke vs Date
40% similar

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

Key facts for danke
PropertyValue
Headworddanke
LanguageGerman
Part of speechParticle
IPA[ˈdaŋkə]
Letters5
Frequency rank#212
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “danke” 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). danke 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 danke is 5 letters long, classified as a particle, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈdaŋkə]. Corpus data places it at rank #212 in overall German word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for danke, with forms such as "adnke", "dakne", and "danek". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "dann", "denk", "Date", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct German form is danke, spelled D-A-N-K-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Wort, das man benutzt, um seinen Dank auszudrücken
  2. 2
    Wort, das man benutzt, um kurz zuzustimmen oder abzulehnen

Antonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: adnke,dakne,danek,dankke,dannke,ddanke,dnake

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of danke - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

adnke2dakne2danek2dankke1dannke1ddanke1dnake2
Edit distance from "danke"

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 "danke"?
"danke" is spelled D-A-N-K-E. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈdaŋkə].
What does "danke" mean?
As a particle, "danke" means: Wort, das man benutzt, um seinen Dank auszudrücken
What words are commonly confused with "danke"?
"danke" is commonly confused with "dann", "denk", "Date". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "danke"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "danke" is [ˈdaŋkə]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "danke" come from?
"danke" 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 “danke”

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

  • The one correct German spelling is D-A-N-K-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [ˈdaŋkə] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “dann” - see the side-by-side comparison. danke vs dann
  • 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