Kern

[kɛʁn]

/[kɛʁn]/ noun

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

The verdict

“Kern” has 6 generated spelling variants in the German index at frequency #2,602. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#2,602
frequency rank, German
4,158
“K” headwords
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - in der Mitte befindlicher Hauptbestandteil eines Ganzen; Basis, Zentrum

Corpus desk

Index DE-kern · Kern · German

Kern · rank #2,602 · 6 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #2,602
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 6 variants
  • BOOK-MID 4,158
  • PHOTO-FINISH hör

Nearest frequency peer: hör (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “Kern”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “Kern” sits against the nearest ranked German headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

Kern vs Kr
50% similar
Kern vs key
25% similar
Kern vs Kür
50% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for Kern
PropertyValue
HeadwordKern
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[kɛʁn]
Letters4
Frequency rank#2,602
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Wo “Kern” in der deutschen Häufigkeit sitzt

Von links nach rechts: die wenigen Träger des Alltags, dann der lange Schwanz kaum gebrauchter Formen.Kernliegt hier:

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

Die Skala ist logarithmisch (jeder Tick ≈ 10× seltener). In derselben Seltenheitsbandbreite liegen „hör“ (#2,601), „Kreuz“ (#2,603), „hierzu“ (#2,600). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 6 spelling variants around Kern (IPA [kɛʁn]), anoun. Corpus frequency is #2,602 among 4,158 “K” headwords. Wiktionary lists 19 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for Kern, with forms such as "ekrn", "kenr", and "kernn". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Kr", "key", "Kür", 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, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct German form is Kern, spelled K-E-R-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    in der Mitte befindlicher Hauptbestandteil eines Ganzen; Basis, Zentrum
  2. 2
    Menge aller Elemente, die auf das neutrale Element abgebildet werden
  3. 3
    Stein^([10]) der Steinfrüchte; innen befindlicher Teil, fester Teil von Früchten oder Samen von Früchten
  4. 4
    Innenteile des Fruchtkerns/der Fruchthülle
  5. 5
    enthülstes Getreidekorn, meist Dinkelkorn
  6. 6
    Zellkern
  7. 7
    Atomkern
  8. 8
    Reaktorkern
  9. 9
    Eisenkern
  10. 10
    Nervenkern
  11. 11
    in eine Gießform eingebrachtes, speziell geformtes Teil an der Stelle eines Hohlraumes
  12. 12
    wichtigster, aktivster Teil einer Gruppe
  13. 13
    eingelegter, runder Teil, der sich im Mundstück der Blockflöte befindet
  14. 14
    Innenteil bei Orgelpfeifen
  15. 15
    Innenteil aus abdichtendem Material bei einem Staudamm
  16. 16
    Innenteil bei höheren Stahlbetonbauten; Gleitkern
  17. 17
    Innenteil bei bestimmten Baumstämmen
  18. 18
    Fleischkörper ohne Balg beim Raubwild
  19. 19
    Kernstück einer gegerbten Rindshaut, welches eine feste, gleichmäßige Struktur aufweist und das wertvollste Stück ist

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Im Kern der Stadt liegt die Kirche mit Marktplatz.
  2. „Im Unterhaltsstreit geht es im Kern darum, ob, in welcher Höhe und für welchen Zeitraum die eine Partei der anderen Unterhalt schuldet.“

Synonyms

das A und OAtomkern

This word in other languages

core(English)fondo(Español)noyau(Français)núcleo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ekrn
  • kenr
  • kernn
  • kerrn
  • kkern
  • kren

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Kern - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ekrn2kenr2kernn1kerrn1kkern1kren2
Edit distance from "Kern"

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 "Kern"?
"Kern" is spelled K-E-R-N. The IPA pronunciation is [kɛʁn].
What does "Kern" mean?
As a noun, "Kern" means: in der Mitte befindlicher Hauptbestandteil eines Ganzen; Basis, Zentrum
What words are commonly confused with "Kern"?
"Kern" is commonly confused with "Kr", "key", "Kür". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Kern"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Kern" is [kɛʁn]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Kern" come from?
"Kern" is a German word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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 "Kern", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 4 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

müde#2,604Hass#2,598open#2,607Shop#2,614

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (6 here; floor ≥5).

Brot6 variantsTiefe6 variantsWild6 variantswarm6 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "Kern". Here's where to go from here.

  • "Kern" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "Kr". View pair
  • 6 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #2,602 among German headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more German words in the "K" letter cohort. K–Z browse

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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