del

abbrev

The verdict

“del” is a regularly-used German word, ranked #3,719 in German word frequency and used as an abbreviation.

#3,719
frequency rank, German
3
letters
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Bezeichnung für ∂, ein Symbol für die partielle Ableitung – es ist nicht mit dem kleinen Delta δ zu verwechseln

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

del vs du
33% similar
del vs do
33% similar
del vs dm
33% similar

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

Key facts for del
PropertyValue
Headworddel
LanguageGerman
Part of speechAbbreviation
Letters3
Frequency rank#3,719
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “del” 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). del 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 del is 3 letters long, classified as an abbreviation. Corpus data places it at rank #3,719 in overall German word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Bezeichnung für ∂, ein Symbol für die partielle Ableitung – es ist nicht mit dem kleinen Delta δ zu verwechseln".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for del, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "du", "do", "dm", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct German form is del, spelled D-E-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Bezeichnung für ∂, ein Symbol für die partielle Ableitung – es ist nicht mit dem kleinen Delta δ zu verwechseln

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 "del"?
"del" is spelled D-E-L.
What does "del" mean?
As an abbreviation, "del" means: Bezeichnung für ∂, ein Symbol für die partielle Ableitung – es ist nicht mit dem kleinen Delta δ zu verwechseln
What words are commonly confused with "del"?
"del" is commonly confused with "du", "do", "dm". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
What language does "del" come from?
"del" is a German word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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 “del”

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

  • The one correct German spelling is D-E-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Don't mix it up with “du” - see the side-by-side comparison. del vs du
  • 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