Schrottwichteln
German, noun/ˈʃʁɔtˌvɪçtəln/
Schrottwichteln is spelled S-C-H-R-O-T-T-W-I-C-H-T-E-L-N (15 letters) and appears about once in every 18 million words in written German, the 241,486th most frequent German word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Schrottwichteln is a German neuter noun meaning “a variation of secret Santa where people give away presents they received but don't actually want, e.g. after Christmas” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The German Wiktionary defines it as “meist während der Adventszeit oder kurz nach Weihnachten stattfindende Veranstaltung, bei der für den Geber…”.
What does Schrottwichteln mean in English?
noun
- 1
neutera variation of secret Santa where people give away presents they received but don't actually want, e.g. after Christmas
- 2
neutera variation of secret Santa where people try to give the most trashy gifts possible
- 3
neuterwhite elephant gift exchange (party game where amusing and impractical gifts are exchanged during festivities)
Source: English Wiktionary, German section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How German dictionaries define it
noun: 1. meist während der Adventszeit oder kurz nach Weihnachten stattfindende Veranstaltung, bei der für den Geber als wertlos empfundene Gegenstände untereinander verschenkt oder verlost werden
The definition in the German Wiktionary, in German.
Source: German Wiktionary, dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of Schrottwichteln
- Schrottwichtelns genitive
Source: English Wiktionary and German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce Schrottwichteln?
- /ˈʃʁɔtˌvɪçtəln/
- [ˈʃʁɔtˌvɪçtl̩n]
Sources: English Wiktionary, German Wiktionary (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
How common is Schrottwichteln in German?
Schrottwichteln appears about once in every 18 million words in written German.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).