Handbreit

[ˈhantbʁaɪ̯t]

/[ˈhantbʁaɪ̯t]/ noun

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

The verdict

“Handbreit” is uncommon German (frequency #81,643 among 3,372 “H” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#81,643
frequency rank, German
3,372
“H” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - historisches, unbestimmtes Längenmaß in der Dimension der Breite einer menschlichen Handfläche

Corpus desk

Index DE-handbreit · Handbreit · German

Handbreit · rank #81,643 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #81,643
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,372
  • PHOTO-FINISH Hallig

Nearest frequency peer: Hallig (-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.

Langschwanz-Ränge nahe „Handbreit“

Dünnes Band: Balken invertieren den Rang, seltenere Formen wirken kürzer

corpus weight

What this shows Langschwanz-Sicht: wo „Handbreit“ gegen ähnlich seltene deutsche Ränge sitzt.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for Handbreit
PropertyValue
HeadwordHandbreit
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈhantbʁaɪ̯t]
Letters9
Frequency rank#81,643
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „Handbreit“ im Deutschen

Die Häufigkeit läuft von den wenigen Alltagswörtern (links) bis zur langen, seltenen Schwanzseite (rechts).Handbreitfällt in diesen Seltenheitsbereich:

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

Die Skala ist logarithmisch (jeder Tick ≈ 10× seltener). Seltene Nachbarn derselben Bandbreite: „Hallig“ (#81,642), „Handelszentrum“ (#81,644), „Haftzeit“ (#81,641). Unter 3,372 „H“-Lemmata liegt „Handbreit“ bei #81,643. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

Handbreit is uncommon German at frequency #81,643 among 3,372 “H” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed [ˈhantbʁaɪ̯t]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "historisches, unbestimmtes Längenmaß in der Dimension der Breite einer menschlichen Handfläche".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for Handbreit, suggesting the orthography follows predictable German patterns. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct German form is Handbreit, spelled H-A-N-D-B-R-E-I-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    historisches, unbestimmtes Längenmaß in der Dimension der Breite einer menschlichen Handfläche

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Ich wünsche allzeit gute Fahrt und immer eine Handbreit Wasser unter dem Kiel!

Antonyms

Fußbreit

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 "Handbreit"?
"Handbreit" is spelled H-A-N-D-B-R-E-I-T. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈhantbʁaɪ̯t].
What does "Handbreit" mean?
As a noun, "Handbreit" means: historisches, unbestimmtes Längenmaß in der Dimension der Breite einer menschlichen Handfläche
How do you pronounce "Handbreit"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Handbreit" is [ˈhantbʁaɪ̯t]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Handbreit" come from?
"Handbreit" 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.

Similar German words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "Handbreit", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Günstling#81,639Hassliebe#81,648Gärtnerin#81,637Haupthaar#81,650

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list