elternlos

[ˈɛltɐnloːs]

/[ˈɛltɐnloːs]/ adj

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency German
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - keine Eltern mehr besitzend

Corpus desk

Index DE-elternlos · elternlos · German

elternlos · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "E" 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 elternlos
PropertyValue
Headwordelternlos
LanguageGerman
Part of speechAdjective
IPA[ˈɛltɐnloːs]
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „elternlos“ im Deutschen

elternlosliegt außerhalb der 100.000 häufigsten deutschen Wörter, im Langschwanz technischer, archaischer oder seltener Formen, genau dort, wo Schreibzweifeln zuschlagen.

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

Rare enough to double-check

elternlos is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed [ˈɛltɐnloːs]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "keine Eltern mehr besitzend".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for elternlos, a sign its spelling follows regular German conventions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct German form is elternlos, spelled E-L-T-E-R-N-L-O-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    keine Eltern mehr besitzend

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Er wuchs elternlos in einem Waisenheim auf.

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 "elternlos"?
"elternlos" is spelled E-L-T-E-R-N-L-O-S. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈɛltɐnloːs].
What does "elternlos" mean?
As an adjective, "elternlos" means: keine Eltern mehr besitzend
How do you pronounce "elternlos"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "elternlos" is [ˈɛltɐnloːs]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "elternlos" come from?
"elternlos" 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list