Marasmus

[maˈʁasmus]

/[maˈʁasmus]/ noun

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency German
8
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - fortschreitender Verfall der körperlichen und geistigen Kräfte, durch Alter, Krankheit oder Mangelernährung; Eiweiß- und Energiemangel

Corpus desk

Index DE-marasmus · Marasmus · German

Marasmus · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "M" 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 Marasmus
PropertyValue
HeadwordMarasmus
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[maˈʁasmus]
Letters8
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „Marasmus“ im Deutschen

Marasmusschafft 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

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

No misspelling variants are generated for Marasmus in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular German conventions. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct German form is Marasmus, spelled M-A-R-A-S-M-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    fortschreitender Verfall der körperlichen und geistigen Kräfte, durch Alter, Krankheit oder Mangelernährung; Eiweiß- und Energiemangel
  2. 2
    Verlust an Kraft; Verfall

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. „Die Masern", schrieb die New York Times, sind bei mangelernährten afrikanischen Kindern „ein Killer". Andere Folgeerkrankungen durch unzureichende Ernährung: Eisenmangelanämie, Diarrhöe, Marasmus (allgemeiner Verfall) und Kwashiorkor (ein sogenannter Mehlnährschaden, der, sich entwickelt, wenn trotz ausreichender Kohlehydrateernährung dem Körper zuwenig…
  2. Die Auswirkungen: In den Slums von Bangkok ist jedes zweite Baby unterernährt, und jedes siebte Kleinkind leidet an Marasmus.

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 "Marasmus"?
"Marasmus" is spelled M-A-R-A-S-M-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is [maˈʁasmus].
What does "Marasmus" mean?
As a noun, "Marasmus" means: fortschreitender Verfall der körperlichen und geistigen Kräfte, durch Alter, Krankheit oder Mangelernährung; Eiweiß- und Energiemangel
How do you pronounce "Marasmus"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Marasmus" is [maˈʁasmus]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Marasmus" come from?
"Marasmus" 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