peinlich

[ˈpaɪ̯nˌlɪç]

/[ˈpaɪ̯nˌlɪç]/ adj

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

The verdict

“peinlich” has 12 generated spelling variants in the German index at frequency #3,611. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#3,611
frequency rank, German
3,409
“P” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - beschämend, unangenehm

Corpus desk

Index DE-peinlich · peinlich · German

peinlich · rank #3,611 · 12 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #3,611
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,409
  • PHOTO-FINISH Ohr

Nearest frequency peer: Ohr (-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.

Rang-Peers am Tippfehler-Magneten „peinlich“

Gleiche Seltenheitsbandbreite: nützlich, wenn ein Tippfehler auf ein Peer-Lemma trifft

corpus weight

What this shows „peinlich“ sitzt unter diesen FrequencyWords-Peers; die Tippfehlertiefe steht separat im Edit-Distance-Chart.

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).

peinlich vs peinliche
89% similar
peinlich vs preislich
78% similar
peinlich vs peinlichen
80% similar

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

Key facts for peinlich
PropertyValue
Headwordpeinlich
LanguageGerman
Part of speechAdjective
IPA[ˈpaɪ̯nˌlɪç]
Letters8
Frequency rank#3,611
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Häufigkeitslage von Tippfehler-Magnet „peinlich“

Von links nach rechts: die wenigen Träger des Alltags, dann der lange Schwanz kaum gebrauchter Formen.peinlichliegt hier neben dem Tippfehler-Druck:

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

Die Achse ist logarithmisch: jeder Tick markiert etwa zehnfach geringere Häufigkeit. Peers derselben Seltenheitsbandbreite: „Ohr“ (#3,610), „planen“ (#3,612), „nee“ (#3,609). Unter 3,409 „P“-Lemmata liegt „peinlich“ bei #3,611. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around peinlich (IPA [ˈpaɪ̯nˌlɪç]), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #3,611 among 3,409 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for peinlich, with forms such as "epinlich", "peilnich", and "peinilch". 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 5 confusable-pair relationships, "peinliche", "preislich", "peinlichen", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct German form is peinlich, spelled P-E-I-N-L-I-C-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    beschämend, unangenehm
  2. 2
    Körperstrafen, speziell die Folter betreffend
  3. 3
    sehr genau, pedantisch

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Es war ihm furchtbar peinlich, dass er seinen Geldbeutel verloren hatte.
  2. „Dem Freiherrn selber jedoch war die Popularität als Lügenbaron eher peinlich, zudem erwies sich sein zweifelhafter Ruf bei einem späteren Scheidungsprozess, der ihn finanziell ruinierte, als wenig vorteilhaft.“

Synonyms

blamabelgewissenhaft

This word in other languages

awkward(English)vergonzoso(Español)embarrassant(Français)penoso(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • epinlich
  • peilnich
  • peinilch
  • peinlcih
  • peinlicch
  • peinlichh
  • peinlihc
  • peinllich
  • peinnlich
  • penilich
  • pienlich
  • ppeinlich

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

epinlich2peilnich2peinilch2peinlcih2peinlicch1peinlichh1peinlihc2peinllich1
Edit distance from "peinlich"

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 "peinlich"?
"peinlich" is spelled P-E-I-N-L-I-C-H. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈpaɪ̯nˌlɪç].
What does "peinlich" mean?
As an adjective, "peinlich" means: beschämend, unangenehm
What words are commonly confused with "peinlich"?
"peinlich" is commonly confused with "peinliche", "preislich", "peinlichen". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "peinlich"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "peinlich" is [ˈpaɪ̯nˌlɪç]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "peinlich" come from?
"peinlich" 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 "peinlich", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Sprecher#3,619Kindheit#3,595Haushalt#3,589überlegt#3,633

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

vorkommen12 variantsgeringer12 variantsGebrauch12 variantsbetreiben12 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list