den Kopf über Wasser halten

[deːn kɔp͡f ˈyːbɐ ˈvasɐ ˈhaltn̩]

/[deːn kɔp͡f ˈyːbɐ ˈvasɐ ˈhaltn̩]/ phrase

The verdict

“den Kopf über Wasser halten” is outside the top-ranked German vocabulary, used as a phrase - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency German
27
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) — finanziell/wirtschaftlich durchhalten können beziehungsweise versuchen weiterzubestehen

Key facts for den Kopf über Wasser halten
PropertyValue
Headwordden Kopf über Wasser halten
LanguageGerman
Part of speechPhrase
IPA[deːn kɔp͡f ˈyːbɐ ˈvasɐ ˈhaltn̩]
Letters27
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “den Kopf über Wasser halten” sits in German frequency

den Kopf über Wasser halten falls outside the top-100,000 ranked German words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The German entry for den Kopf über Wasser halten is 27 letters long, classified as a phrase, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [deːn kɔp͡f ˈyːbɐ ˈvasɐ ˈhaltn̩]. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "finanziell/wirtschaftlich durchhalten können beziehungsweise versuchen weiterzubestehen".

No misspelling variants are generated for den Kopf über Wasser halten in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable German patterns. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct German form is den Kopf über Wasser halten, spelled D-E-N- -K-O-P-F- -Ü-B-E-R- -W-A-S-S-E-R- -H-A-L-T-E-N, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    finanziell/wirtschaftlich durchhalten können beziehungsweise versuchen weiterzubestehen

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.

Cite this page

Free to reuse with attribution (CC BY-SA). Copy the citation:

PlainSpell, “den Kopf über Wasser halten, German word data” (May 6, 2026). Derived from Wiktionary (kaikki.org, CC BY-SA) and an open word-frequency list. https://plainspell.com/de/wort/den-kopf-uber-wasser-halten

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "den Kopf über Wasser halten"?
"den Kopf über Wasser halten" is spelled D-E-N- -K-O-P-F- -Ü-B-E-R- -W-A-S-S-E-R- -H-A-L-T-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is [deːn kɔp͡f ˈyːbɐ ˈvasɐ ˈhaltn̩].
What does "den Kopf über Wasser halten" mean?
As a phrase, "den Kopf über Wasser halten" means: finanziell/wirtschaftlich durchhalten können beziehungsweise versuchen weiterzubestehen
How do you pronounce "den Kopf über Wasser halten"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "den Kopf über Wasser halten" is [deːn kɔp͡f ˈyːbɐ ˈvasɐ ˈhaltn̩]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "den Kopf über Wasser halten" come from?
"den Kopf über Wasser halten" 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 “den Kopf über Wasser halten”

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

  • The one correct German spelling is D-E-N- -K-O-P-F- -Ü-B-E-R- -W-A-S-S-E-R- -H-A-L-T-E-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [deːn kɔp͡f ˈyːbɐ ˈvasɐ ˈhaltn̩] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words

Nearby German words

Other entries that begin with the letter D in our German index:

Explore PlainSpell

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