-ismus

[ˈɪsmʊs]

/[ˈɪsmʊs]/ suffix

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency German
6
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - kennzeichnet abstrakte ideologische, kulturelle, geisteswissenschaftliche oder ähnliche Richtungen

Corpus desk

Index DE-ismus · -ismus · German

-ismus · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "-" 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 -ismus
PropertyValue
Headword-ismus
LanguageGerman
Part of speechSuffix
IPA[ˈɪsmʊs]
Letters6
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “-ismus” sits in German frequency

-ismus 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

-ismus is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as asuffix, transcribed [ˈɪsmʊs]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for -ismus, a sign its spelling follows regular German conventions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct German form is -ismus, spelled --I-S-M-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    kennzeichnet abstrakte ideologische, kulturelle, geisteswissenschaftliche oder ähnliche Richtungen
  2. 2
    bezeichnet etwas, das die Eigenschaft des im Basiswort inhaltlich Ausgedrückten hat
  3. 3
    bezeichnet einige Krankheiten und körperliche Veränderungen

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "-ismus"?
"-ismus" is spelled --I-S-M-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈɪsmʊs].
What does "-ismus" mean?
As a suffix, "-ismus" means: kennzeichnet abstrakte ideologische, kulturelle, geisteswissenschaftliche oder ähnliche Richtungen
How do you pronounce "-ismus"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "-ismus" is [ˈɪsmʊs]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "-ismus" come from?
"-ismus" 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.
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