selbst

[zɛlpst]

/[zɛlpst]/ pron

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

The verdict

“selbst” has 10 generated spelling variants in the German index at frequency #122. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#122
frequency rank, German
8,027
“S” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
9
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - persönlich (immer in Kontrast zu anderen Möglichkeiten, die im Kontext enthalten sind)

Corpus desk

Index DE-selbst · selbst · German

selbst · rank #122 · 10 variants · 9 confusables

  • FREQ-CORE #122
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-MID 9 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 8,027
  • PHOTO-FINISH soll

Nearest frequency peer: soll (-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 „selbst“

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

corpus weight

What this shows „selbst“ 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).

selbst vs sollst
67% similar
selbst vs select
67% similar
selbst vs Solist
50% similar

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

Key facts for selbst
PropertyValue
Headwordselbst
LanguageGerman
Part of speechPronoun
IPA[zɛlpst]
Letters6
Frequency rank#122
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs9
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Häufigkeitslage von Tippfehler-Magnet „selbst“

Diese Skala geht vom Kern des Alltagdeutschen (links) bis zum seltenen Langschwanz (rechts).selbstliegt hier neben dem Tippfehler-Druck:

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

Die Skala ist logarithmisch (jeder Tick ≈ 10× seltener). Peers derselben Seltenheitsbandbreite: „soll“ (#121), „wo“ (#123), „seit“ (#120). Unter 8,027 „S“-Lemmata liegt „selbst“ bei #122. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around selbst (IPA [zɛlpst]), apronoun. Corpus frequency is #122 among 8,027 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for selbst, with forms such as "eslbst", "seblst", and "selbbst". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 9 confusable-pair relationships, "sollst", "select", "Solist", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

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 selbst, spelled S-E-L-B-S-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    persönlich (immer in Kontrast zu anderen Möglichkeiten, die im Kontext enthalten sind)
  2. 2
    allein, ohne fremde Hilfe

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. „Jeder glücklich erreichte Gipfel vermittelt das Bewusstsein, sich ein nicht jedermann zugängliches, dem Bergsteiger wichtiges Stück Bergwelt unseres Globus selbst erarbeitet und damit zu eigen gemacht zu haben.“

Synonyms

alleinpersönlichselber

This word in other languages

-self(English)mismo(Español)moi-même(Français)próprio(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • eslbst
  • seblst
  • selbbst
  • selbsst
  • selbstt
  • selbts
  • sellbst
  • selsbt
  • slebst
  • sselbst

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of selbst - 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.

eslbst2seblst2selbbst1selbsst1selbstt1selbts2sellbst1selsbt2
Edit distance from "selbst"

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 "selbst"?
"selbst" is spelled S-E-L-B-S-T. The IPA pronunciation is [zɛlpst].
What does "selbst" mean?
As a pronoun, "selbst" means: persönlich (immer in Kontrast zu anderen Möglichkeiten, die im Kontext enthalten sind)
What words are commonly confused with "selbst"?
"selbst" is commonly confused with "sollst", "select", "Solist". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "selbst"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "selbst" is [zɛlpst]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "selbst" come from?
"selbst" is a German word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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 "selbst", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Nichts#129machen#104seiner#142diesem#147

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

einfach10 variantsanderen10 variantsGrossen10 variantszusammen10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list