obtain
[əbˈteɪn]
The verdict
“obtain” is uncommon German (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency German
- 6
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - etwas erhalten oder erlangen, vor allem durch eigene Bemühungen
Corpus desk
Index DE-obtain · obtain · German
obtain · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-LONG 6 letters
- VOW-3 3 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "O" 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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | obtain |
| Language | German |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | [əbˈteɪn] |
| Letters | 6 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Langschwanz-Rang von „obtain“ im Deutschen
Rare enough to double-check
obtain is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed [əbˈteɪn]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
No generated misspelling entries exist for obtain in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct German form is obtain, spelled O-B-T-A-I-N.
Definition
- 1etwas erhalten oder erlangen, vor allem durch eigene Bemühungen
- 2in seiner Wirkung oder Gültigkeit (weiterhin) bestehen
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how obtain appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
"The more formal we made the visit the less information we might obtain."
"A juice is obtained from the pineapple, which by fermentation yields a liquor possessing stimulating and diuretick properties."
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.