herunterkommen

[hɛˈʁʊntɐˌkɔmən]

/[hɛˈʁʊntɐˌkɔmən]/ verb

The verdict

“herunterkommen” is uncommon German (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. 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) - von oben nach herunter kommen

Corpus desk

Index DE-herunterkommen · herunterkommen · German

herunterkommen · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 14 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "H" 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 herunterkommen
PropertyValue
Headwordherunterkommen
LanguageGerman
Part of speechVerb
IPA[hɛˈʁʊntɐˌkɔmən]
Letters14
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „herunterkommen“ im Deutschen

herunterkommenschafft es nicht in die Top 100.000 des Deutschen: Zone für Fach-, Alt- oder Seltenwortschatz.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

herunterkommen is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed [hɛˈʁʊntɐˌkɔmən]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for herunterkommen, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct German form is herunterkommen, spelled H-E-R-U-N-T-E-R-K-O-M-M-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    von oben nach herunter kommen
  2. 2
    in irgendeiner Form (wirtschaftlich, gesellschaftlich et cetera) absinken

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Er kommt die Treppe zum Essen herunter.
  2. Durch die Wirtschaftskrise ist er vollkommen heruntergekommen.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

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 "herunterkommen"?
"herunterkommen" is spelled H-E-R-U-N-T-E-R-K-O-M-M-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is [hɛˈʁʊntɐˌkɔmən].
What does "herunterkommen" mean?
As a verb, "herunterkommen" means: von oben nach herunter kommen
How do you pronounce "herunterkommen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "herunterkommen" is [hɛˈʁʊntɐˌkɔmən]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "herunterkommen" come from?
"herunterkommen" 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list