genau
[ɡəˈnaʊ̯]
The verdict
“genau” is in the everyday core of German, ranked #211 in German word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #211
- frequency rank, German
- 5
- letters
- 5
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - gründlich und sorgfältig, was das Einhalten von selbstgesetzten oder fremden Regeln betrifft
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | genau |
| Language | German |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | [ɡəˈnaʊ̯] |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #211 |
| Misspellings tracked | 5 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “genau” sits in German frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The German entry for genau is 5 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ɡəˈnaʊ̯]. Corpus data places it at rank #211 in overall German word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for genau, with forms such as "egnau", "geanu", and "gennau". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "gnu", "grau", "Genf", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct German form is genau, spelled G-E-N-A-U.
Definition
- 1gründlich und sorgfältig, was das Einhalten von selbstgesetzten oder fremden Regeln betrifft
- 2um nichts abweichend; exakt zutreffend; auf den Punkt exakt so
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: egnau,geanu,gennau,ggenau,gneau
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of genau - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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 "genau"?
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Using “genau”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct German spelling is G-E-N-A-U - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as [ɡəˈnaʊ̯] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “gnu” - see the side-by-side comparison. genau vs gnu
- Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.