nau

[naw]

/[naw]/ noun

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

The verdict

“nau” is uncommon German (frequency #61,770 among 26,919 “N” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#61,770
frequency rank, German
26,919
“N” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - das Schiff

Key facts for nau
PropertyValue
Headwordnau
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[naw]
Letters3
Frequency rank#61,770
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “nau” sits in German frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). nau lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

nau is uncommon German at frequency #61,770 among 26,919 “N” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed [naw]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for nau in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. Our dataset records no confusable match here, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

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 nau, spelled N-A-U.

Definition

  1. 1
    das Schiff
  2. 2
    das Schiff, das Kirchenschiff
  3. 3
    die Halle

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 "nau"?
"nau" is spelled N-A-U. The IPA pronunciation is [naw].
What does "nau" mean?
As a noun, "nau" means: das Schiff
How do you pronounce "nau"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "nau" is [naw]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "nau" come from?
"nau" 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.

Using “nau”

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

  • The one correct German spelling is N-A-U - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [naw] (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

Other uncommon German words near this rank

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