Melanin

[melaˈniːn]

/[melaˈniːn]/ noun

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency German
7
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - weit verbreitete dunkelbraune bis schwarze oder gelbliche bis rötliche Pigmente

Corpus desk

Index DE-melanin · Melanin · German

Melanin · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 7 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 Melanin
PropertyValue
HeadwordMelanin
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[melaˈniːn]
Letters7
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „Melanin“ im Deutschen

Melaninsitzt jenseits der 100.000 häufigsten deutschen Formen, im Schwanz spezialisierten oder seltenen Wortschatzes.

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

Rare enough to double-check

Melanin is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed [melaˈniːn]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "weit verbreitete dunkelbraune bis schwarze oder gelbliche bis rötliche Pigmente".

No generated misspelling entries exist for Melanin in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct German form is Melanin, spelled M-E-L-A-N-I-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    weit verbreitete dunkelbraune bis schwarze oder gelbliche bis rötliche Pigmente

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. „Der Pilz, Cladosporium sphaerospermum, verdankt seine Farbe einem Mantel aus Melanin.“
  2. „So kann der zweite Wirkstoff, das Hydrochinon, leichter in die Zellen eindringen - und dort verhindern, dass neues Melanin gebildet wird.“

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 "Melanin"?
"Melanin" is spelled M-E-L-A-N-I-N. The IPA pronunciation is [melaˈniːn].
What does "Melanin" mean?
As a noun, "Melanin" means: weit verbreitete dunkelbraune bis schwarze oder gelbliche bis rötliche Pigmente
How do you pronounce "Melanin"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Melanin" is [melaˈniːn]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Melanin" come from?
"Melanin" 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list