plagen
[ˈplaːɡn̩]
The verdict
“plagen” is a moderately-common German word, ranked #24,074 in German word frequency and used as a verb.
- #24,074
- frequency rank, German
- 6
- letters
- 9
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - sich großen Anstrengungen unterziehen
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | plagen |
| Language | German |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | [ˈplaːɡn̩] |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #24,074 |
| Misspellings tracked | 9 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “plagen” sits in German frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The German entry for plagen is 6 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈplaːɡn̩]. Corpus data places it at rank #24,074 in overall German word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for plagen, with forms such as "lpagen", "palgen", and "plaegn". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "Plan", "plane", "plate", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct German form is plagen, spelled P-L-A-G-E-N.
Definition
- 1sich großen Anstrengungen unterziehen
- 2Beschwerden verursachen, lästig werden
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: lpagen,palgen,plaegn,plagenn,plaggen,plagne,plgaen,pllagen,pplagen
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of plagen - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
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 "plagen"?
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Using “plagen”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct German spelling is P-L-A-G-E-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as [ˈplaːɡn̩] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “Plan” - see the side-by-side comparison. plagen vs Plan
- Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words
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.