funkeln

[ˈfʊŋkl̩n]

/[ˈfʊŋkl̩n]/ verb

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

The verdict

“funkeln” has 11 generated spelling variants in the German index at frequency #34,101. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#34,101
frequency rank, German
3,474
“F” headwords
11
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - kurz und schnell aufleuchten, blitzen

Corpus desk

Index DE-funkeln · funkeln · German

funkeln · rank #34,101 · 11 variants · 4 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #34,101
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 4 pairs
  • VAR-MID 11 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,474
  • PHOTO-FINISH Frühzeit

Nearest frequency peer: Frühzeit (-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.

Rang-Peers am Tippfehler-Magneten „funkeln“

Gleiche Seltenheitsbandbreite: nützlich, wenn ein Tippfehler auf ein Peer-Lemma trifft

corpus weight

What this shows „funkeln“ sitzt unter diesen FrequencyWords-Peers; die Tippfehlertiefe steht separat im Edit-Distance-Chart.

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).

funkeln vs Funken
71% similar
funkeln vs Funke
57% similar
funkeln vs Funden
57% similar

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

Key facts for funkeln
PropertyValue
Headwordfunkeln
LanguageGerman
Part of speechVerb
IPA[ˈfʊŋkl̩n]
Letters7
Frequency rank#34,101
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Häufigkeitslage von Tippfehler-Magnet „funkeln“

Diese Skala geht vom Kern des Alltagdeutschen (links) bis zum seltenen Langschwanz (rechts).funkelnliegt hier neben dem Tippfehler-Druck:

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

Die Ticks laufen logarithmisch; jeder ist rund zehnmal seltener. Peers derselben Seltenheitsbandbreite: „Frühzeit“ (#34,100), „frommer“ (#34,099), „Freiwilligkeit“ (#34,098). Unter 3,474 „F“-Lemmata liegt „funkeln“ bei #34,101. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 11 spelling variants around funkeln (IPA [ˈfʊŋkl̩n]), averb. Corpus frequency is #34,101 among 3,474 “F” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for funkeln, with forms such as "ffunkeln", "fnukeln", and "fukneln". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "Funken", "Funke", "Funden", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct German form is funkeln, spelled F-U-N-K-E-L-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    kurz und schnell aufleuchten, blitzen
  2. 2
    als Ausdruck einer Emotion, die (meist) in den Augen sichtbar wird: Erregung oder Freude ausstrahlen
  3. 3
    durch besonderen Witz herausragen, besonders geistreich sein

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Die Tautropfen funkeln auf dem Gras in der frühen Morgensonne wie tausend Diamanten.
  2. „Dieses Jahr haben wir den Weihnachtsbaum toll geschmückt! Die Kerzen, Kugeln und das Lametta funkeln miteinander um die Wette.“

This word in other languages

sparkle(English)brillar(Español)briller(Français)brilhar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ffunkeln
  • fnukeln
  • fukneln
  • funekln
  • funkelln
  • funkelnn
  • funkenl
  • funkkeln
  • funklen
  • funnkeln
  • ufnkeln

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of funkeln - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ffunkeln1fnukeln2fukneln2funekln2funkelln1funkelnn1funkenl2funkkeln1
Edit distance from "funkeln"

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 "funkeln"?
"funkeln" is spelled F-U-N-K-E-L-N. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈfʊŋkl̩n].
What does "funkeln" mean?
As a verb, "funkeln" means: kurz und schnell aufleuchten, blitzen
What words are commonly confused with "funkeln"?
"funkeln" is commonly confused with "Funken", "Funke", "Funden". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "funkeln"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "funkeln" is [ˈfʊŋkl̩n]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "funkeln" come from?
"funkeln" is a German word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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 "funkeln", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

frommer#34,099Gebeine#34,113fahndet#34,088gebeugt#34,114

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (11 here; floor ≥5).

Extrakt11 variantsgemessene11 variantsgetilgt11 variantsgewissem11 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list