thể thao

[tʰe˧˩ tʰaːw˧˧]

/[tʰe˧˩ tʰaːw˧˧]/ noun

The verdict

“thể thao” is outside the top-ranked German vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency German
8
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) — eine körperliche oder geistige Aktivität, die dem Wettkampf oder der Erholung dient; Sport

Key facts for thể thao
PropertyValue
Headwordthể thao
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[tʰe˧˩ tʰaːw˧˧]
Letters8
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “thể thao” sits in German frequency

thể thao falls outside the top-100,000 ranked German words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The German entry for thể thao is 8 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [tʰe˧˩ tʰaːw˧˧]. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

No misspelling variants are generated for thể thao in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable German patterns. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct German form is thể thao, spelled T-H-Ể- -T-H-A-O, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    eine körperliche oder geistige Aktivität, die dem Wettkampf oder der Erholung dient; Sport
  2. 2
    kulturelle Handlung von Menschen, sich körperlich und geistig in Wettkämpfen zu messen; Sport

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Cite this page

Free to reuse with attribution (CC BY-SA). Copy the citation:

PlainSpell, “thể thao, German word data” (May 6, 2026). Derived from Wiktionary (kaikki.org, CC BY-SA) and an open word-frequency list. https://plainspell.com/de/wort/the-thao

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "thể thao"?
"thể thao" is spelled T-H-Ể- -T-H-A-O. The IPA pronunciation is [tʰe˧˩ tʰaːw˧˧].
What does "thể thao" mean?
As a noun, "thể thao" means: eine körperliche oder geistige Aktivität, die dem Wettkampf oder der Erholung dient; Sport
How do you pronounce "thể thao"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "thể thao" is [tʰe˧˩ tʰaːw˧˧]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "thể thao" come from?
"thể thao" 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 “thể thao”

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

  • The one correct German spelling is T-H-Ể- -T-H-A-O - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [tʰe˧˩ tʰaːw˧˧] (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

Nearby German words

Other entries that begin with the letter T in our German index:

Explore PlainSpell

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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list