frank und frei

[fʁaŋk ʊnt fʁaɪ̯]

/[fʁaŋk ʊnt fʁaɪ̯]/ phrase

The verdict

“frank und frei” is uncommon German (outside the top frequency list), classed as a phrase. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency German
14
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - offen und ehrlich, geradeheraus

Corpus desk

Index DE-frank-und-frei · frank und frei · German

frank und frei · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 14 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "F" 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 frank und frei
PropertyValue
Headwordfrank und frei
LanguageGerman
Part of speechPhrase
IPA[fʁaŋk ʊnt fʁaɪ̯]
Letters14
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „frank und frei“ im Deutschen

frank und freiliegt 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

frank und frei is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as aphrase, transcribed [fʁaŋk ʊnt fʁaɪ̯]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "offen und ehrlich, geradeheraus".

No misspelling variants are generated for frank und frei in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct German form is frank und frei, spelled F-R-A-N-K- -U-N-D- -F-R-E-I.

Definition

  1. 1
    offen und ehrlich, geradeheraus

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Er sagte ihr frank und frei, was er darüber dachte.

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 "frank und frei"?
"frank und frei" is spelled F-R-A-N-K- -U-N-D- -F-R-E-I. The IPA pronunciation is [fʁaŋk ʊnt fʁaɪ̯].
What does "frank und frei" mean?
As a phrase, "frank und frei" means: offen und ehrlich, geradeheraus
How do you pronounce "frank und frei"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "frank und frei" is [fʁaŋk ʊnt fʁaɪ̯]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "frank und frei" come from?
"frank und frei" 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