im Sterben liegen

[ɪm ˈʃtɛʁbn̩ ˈliːɡn̩]

/[ɪm ˈʃtɛʁbn̩ ˈliːɡn̩]/ phrase

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

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency German
17
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - bald sterben, kurz vor dem Tod stehen

Key facts for im Sterben liegen
PropertyValue
Headwordim Sterben liegen
LanguageGerman
Part of speechPhrase
IPA[ɪm ˈʃtɛʁbn̩ ˈliːɡn̩]
Letters17
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “im Sterben liegen” sits in German frequency

im Sterben liegen falls outside the top-100,000 ranked German words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

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

Rare enough to double-check

im Sterben liegen is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as aphrase, transcribed [ɪm ˈʃtɛʁbn̩ ˈliːɡn̩]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "bald sterben, kurz vor dem Tod stehen".

im Sterben liegen doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct German form is im Sterben liegen, spelled I-M- -S-T-E-R-B-E-N- -L-I-E-G-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    bald sterben, kurz vor dem Tod stehen

Synonyms

auf dem Sterbebett liegenauf den Tod darniederliegenam Tode liegenmit dem Tode ringen

This word in other languages

breathe one’s last(English)agonizar(Español)agoniser(Français)agonizar(Português)

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 "im Sterben liegen"?
"im Sterben liegen" is spelled I-M- -S-T-E-R-B-E-N- -L-I-E-G-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is [ɪm ˈʃtɛʁbn̩ ˈliːɡn̩].
What does "im Sterben liegen" mean?
As a phrase, "im Sterben liegen" means: bald sterben, kurz vor dem Tod stehen
How do you pronounce "im Sterben liegen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "im Sterben liegen" is [ɪm ˈʃtɛʁbn̩ ˈliːɡn̩]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "im Sterben liegen" come from?
"im Sterben liegen" 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.

Using “im Sterben liegen”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct German spelling is I-M- -S-T-E-R-B-E-N- -L-I-E-G-E-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [ɪm ˈʃtɛʁbn̩ ˈliːɡn̩] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list