formal
German, adjective/fɔʁˈmaːl/
formal is spelled F-O-R-M-A-L (6 letters) and appears 6.6 times per million words in written German, the 9,876th most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Formal is a German adjective meaning “formal (being in accord with established forms)” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The German Wiktionary defines it as “der Form (nicht dem Inhalt) nach”.
What does formal mean in English?
adjective
- 1
formal (being in accord with established forms)
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
adjective: 1. der Form (nicht dem Inhalt) nach 2. nur der Form nach, nicht wirklich in der Realität
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 formal
- formaler masculine nominative singular
- am formalsten superlative
- formale feminine nominative singular
- formales neuter nominative singular
- formalen genitive masculine singular
- formalem dative masculine singular
- der formale definite includes-article masculine
- die formale definite feminine includes-article
- das formale definite includes-article neuter
- die formalen definite includes-article nominative
- des formalen definite genitive includes-article
- der formalen definite feminine genitive
- dem formalen dative definite includes-article
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce formal?
- /fɔʁˈmaːl/
- [fɔʁˈmaːl]
Sources: English Wiktionary, German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to formal
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is formal in German?
formal appears 6.6 times per million words in written German.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).