Sphinx

[sfɪŋks]

/[sfɪŋks]/ noun

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

The verdict

“Sphinx” has 10 generated spelling variants in the German index at frequency #40,218. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#40,218
frequency rank, German
8,027
“S” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
6
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Statue eines männlichen Löwen mit einem Menschenkopf beziehungsweise auch einem Kopf des Widders, Falken und Sperbers

Corpus desk

Index DE-sphinx · Sphinx · German

Sphinx · rank #40,218 · 10 variants · 6 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #40,218
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-MID 6 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 8,027
  • PHOTO-FINISH spekulativ

Nearest frequency peer: spekulativ (-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 „Sphinx“

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

corpus weight

What this shows „Sphinx“ 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).

Sphinx vs Spin
67% similar
Sphinx vs spring
50% similar
Sphinx vs Sprint
67% similar

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

Key facts for Sphinx
PropertyValue
HeadwordSphinx
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[sfɪŋks]
Letters6
Frequency rank#40,218
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs6
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Häufigkeitslage von Tippfehler-Magnet „Sphinx“

Die Häufigkeit läuft von den wenigen Alltagswörtern (links) bis zur langen, seltenen Schwanzseite (rechts).Sphinxliegt hier neben dem Tippfehler-Druck:

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

Die Ticks laufen logarithmisch; jeder ist rund zehnmal seltener. Peers derselben Seltenheitsbandbreite: „spekulativ“ (#40,217), „Spieltags“ (#40,219), „spektakulärer“ (#40,216). Unter 8,027 „S“-Lemmata liegt „Sphinx“ bei #40,218. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around Sphinx (IPA [sfɪŋks]), anoun. Corpus frequency is #40,218 among 8,027 “S” headwords. Wiktionary lists 5 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for Sphinx, with forms such as "pshinx", "shpinx", and "sphhinx". 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 6 confusable-pair relationships, "Spin", "spring", "Sprint", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

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 Sphinx, spelled S-P-H-I-N-X.

Definition

  1. 1
    Statue eines männlichen Löwen mit einem Menschenkopf beziehungsweise auch einem Kopf des Widders, Falken und Sperbers
  2. 2
    bekanntes Bauwerk aus dem Alten Ägypten
  3. 3
    Statue eines geflügelten Löwen mit dem Kopf einer Frau beziehungsweise auch eine Frau mit den Tatzen und Brüsten einer Löwin
  4. 4
    Gattung der Schwärmer, einer Unterart der Schmetterlinge
  5. 5
    Hauskatzenrasse mit nur leichtem Flaum als Fell

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. „Die meisten als Sphinx bezeichneten Statuen stellen einen König oder Pharao als Sonnengott, Horus oder auch andere ägyptische Götter dar, andere fungierten in liegender Form als Wächterfiguren vor Tempeleingängen.“
  2. „Die Mumienabteilung ist das Herz des Ägyptischen Museums, vorher mussten wir an Sphinxen und Göttern vorbei, die entweder keinen Kopf oder keinen Rumpf mehr hatten, aber auch an Nachbauten von Streitwagen, für die ich ein größeres Faible besitze.“

This word in other languages

Sphinx(English)esfinge(Español)sphinx(Français)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • pshinx
  • shpinx
  • sphhinx
  • sphinnx
  • sphinxx
  • sphixn
  • sphnix
  • spihnx
  • spphinx
  • ssphinx

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

pshinx2shpinx2sphhinx1sphinnx1sphinxx1sphixn2sphnix2spihnx2
Edit distance from "Sphinx"

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 "Sphinx"?
"Sphinx" is spelled S-P-H-I-N-X. The IPA pronunciation is [sfɪŋks].
What does "Sphinx" mean?
As a noun, "Sphinx" means: Statue eines männlichen Löwen mit einem Menschenkopf beziehungsweise auch einem Kopf des Widders, Falken und Sperbers
What words are commonly confused with "Sphinx"?
"Sphinx" is commonly confused with "Spin", "spring", "Sprint". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Sphinx"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Sphinx" is [sfɪŋks]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Sphinx" come from?
"Sphinx" 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.

Similar German words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "Sphinx", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

Sherry#40,208schwor#40,200Syrern#40,236Schund#40,198

Similar misspelling depth

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

Staudamm10 variantsseufzte10 variantsRössler10 variantsunteres10 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list