Shutdown

[ˈʃatdaʊ̯n]

/[ˈʃatdaʊ̯n]/ noun

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

The verdict

“Shutdown” is uncommon German (frequency #71,842 among 107,600 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#71,842
frequency rank, German
107,600
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Herunterfahren eines Rechners, sodass dieser in einen Ruhezustand versetzt wird

Key facts for Shutdown
PropertyValue
HeadwordShutdown
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈʃatdaʊ̯n]
Letters8
Frequency rank#71,842
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Shutdown” sits in German frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). Shutdown lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

Shutdown is uncommon German at frequency #71,842 among 107,600 “S” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed [ˈʃatdaʊ̯n]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Shutdown doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a sign its spelling follows regular German conventions. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct German form is Shutdown, spelled S-H-U-T-D-O-W-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Herunterfahren eines Rechners, sodass dieser in einen Ruhezustand versetzt wird
  2. 2
    Situation, in der weite Teile der Behörden eines Landes infolge nicht bewilligter Haushaltsmittel lahmgelegt sind; gelegentlich in den USA vorkommend, dort blockieren sich dann der US-Senat, das Repräsentantenhaus und der Präsident gegenseitig
  3. 3
    Form des Unterbindens von Kontakten zwischen Menschen, um ein Ansteckungsrisiko zu minimieren, zum Beispiel indem Bezirke abgeriegelt werden oder Ausgangssperren verhängt werden, das öffentliche Leben komplett runtergefahren wird

Synonyms

HerunterfahrenGovernment ShutdownLockdown

Antonyms

Reboot

This word in other languages

shutdown(English)

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 "Shutdown"?
"Shutdown" is spelled S-H-U-T-D-O-W-N. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈʃatdaʊ̯n].
What does "Shutdown" mean?
As a noun, "Shutdown" means: Herunterfahren eines Rechners, sodass dieser in einen Ruhezustand versetzt wird
How do you pronounce "Shutdown"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Shutdown" is [ˈʃatdaʊ̯n]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Shutdown" come from?
"Shutdown" is a German word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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.

Using “Shutdown”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct German spelling is S-H-U-T-D-O-W-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [ˈʃatdaʊ̯n] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words

Other uncommon German words near this rank

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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list