Erbfeind
German, noun/ˈɛrpˌfaɪ̯nt/
Erbfeind is spelled E-R-B-F-E-I-N-D (8 letters) and appears about once in every 9 million words in written German, the 154,802nd most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Erbfeind is a German masculine noun meaning “A historical enemy, hereditary (inherited) or sworn enemy believed to be hostile for generations (male or of unspecified gender)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The German Wiktionary defines it as “ständiger Gegner”.
What does Erbfeind mean in English?
noun
- 1
masculineA historical enemy, hereditary (inherited) or sworn enemy believed to be hostile for generations (male or of unspecified gender)
- 2
datedmasculinethe Devil
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
noun: 1. ständiger Gegner 2. seit Generationen verfeindetes Volk
The definition in the German Wiktionary, in German.
Source: German Wiktionary, dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of Erbfeind
- Erbfeindes genitive
- Erbfeinds genitive
- Erbfeinde plural
- Erbfeindin feminine
- Erbfeinden dative definite plural
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce Erbfeind?
- /ˈɛrpˌfaɪ̯nt/
- [ˈɛʁpˌfaɪ̯nt]
Sources: English Wiktionary, German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
How common is Erbfeind in German?
Erbfeind appears about once in every 9 million words in written German.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).