DNA

[ˌdeːʔɛnˈʔaː]

/[ˌdeːʔɛnˈʔaː]/ noun

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

The verdict

“DNA” sits in 20 confusable pairs (corpus #5,817) as a noun. The look-alike neighbours are the real trap.

#5,817
frequency rank, German
2,764
“D” headwords
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Desoxyribonukleinsäure, DNS

Corpus desk

Index DE-dna · DNA · German

DNA · rank #5,817 · 0 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #5,817
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,764
  • PHOTO-FINISH Diktatur

Nearest frequency peer: Diktatur (-1 rank slots)

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.

Häufigkeitsnachbarn des Verwechslers „DNA“

Peers mit ähnlichem Corpus-Gewicht, getrennt von den Verwechslungspaaren unten

corpus weight

What this shows Balken platzieren „DNA“ gegen die nächsten gerankten deutschen Lemmata, kein Reprint der Verwechslungsdesk.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

DNA vs du
0% similar
DNA vs do
0% similar
DNA vs Ds
33% similar

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

Key facts for DNA
PropertyValue
HeadwordDNA
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˌdeːʔɛnˈʔaː]
Letters3
Frequency rank#5,817
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Corpus-Rang neben Verwechslern von „DNA“

Von links nach rechts: die wenigen Träger des Alltags, dann der lange Schwanz kaum gebrauchter Formen.DNAliegt auf dieser Marke:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Die Achse ist logarithmisch: jeder Tick markiert etwa zehnfach geringere Häufigkeit. Peers derselben Seltenheitsbandbreite: „Diktatur“ (#5,816), „DOC“ (#5,818), „Digitalisierung“ (#5,815). Unter 2,764 „D“-Lemmata liegt „DNA“ bei #5,817. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Easy to mix with look-alikes

The spelling risk for DNA is neighbouring look-alikes ("du", "do", …), not just typos; it is anoun pronounced [ˌdeːʔɛnˈʔaː]. Frequency #5,817 among 2,764 “D” headwords. 2 recorded senses keep meaning in play.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for DNA, a sign its spelling follows regular German conventions. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "du", "do", "Ds", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct German form is DNA, spelled D-N-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    Desoxyribonukleinsäure, DNS
  2. 2
    Deutscher Normenausschuß, Deutscher Normenausschuss, Deutsches Institut für Normung

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. „Allerdings ist die Liste dessen, was man einst als unvermeidlich angesehen, später aber als Unfug erkannt hat, länger als unsere DNA.“
  2. „Und sie entdeckten an der Schutzfolie und an den Betonbrocken von der Fahrbahn Spuren einer DNA, die sich auch in der Datenbank des Landeskriminalamts fand.“

Synonyms

DNSDesoxyribonukleinsäure

This word in other languages

ADN(Français)

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 "DNA"?
"DNA" is spelled D-N-A. The IPA pronunciation is [ˌdeːʔɛnˈʔaː].
What does "DNA" mean?
As a noun, "DNA" means: Desoxyribonukleinsäure, DNS
What words are commonly confused with "DNA"?
"DNA" is commonly confused with "du", "do", "Ds". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "DNA"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "DNA" is [ˌdeːʔɛnˈʔaː]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "DNA" come from?
"DNA" is a German word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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.

Similar German words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "DNA", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

DOC#5,818duo#5,822Kai#5,859Ski#5,880

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list