Timbuktu

[tɪmˈbʊktu]

/[tɪmˈbʊktu]/ name

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

The verdict

“Timbuktu” is uncommon German (frequency #67,787 among 2,684 “T” headwords), classed as a proper noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#67,787
frequency rank, German
2,684
“T” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - deutsche Bezeichnung der Stadt Tombouctou in Mali

Corpus desk

Index DE-timbuktu · Timbuktu · German

Timbuktu · rank #67,787 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #67,787
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,684
  • PHOTO-FINISH Todesdrohungen

Nearest frequency peer: Todesdrohungen (+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.

Langschwanz-Ränge nahe „Timbuktu“

Dünnes Band: Balken invertieren den Rang, seltenere Formen wirken kürzer

corpus weight

What this shows Langschwanz-Sicht: wo „Timbuktu“ gegen ähnlich seltene deutsche Ränge sitzt.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for Timbuktu
PropertyValue
HeadwordTimbuktu
LanguageGerman
Part of speechProper noun
IPA[tɪmˈbʊktu]
Letters8
Frequency rank#67,787
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „Timbuktu“ im Deutschen

Von links nach rechts: die wenigen Träger des Alltags, dann der lange Schwanz kaum gebrauchter Formen.Timbuktufällt in diesen Seltenheitsbereich:

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

Die Achse ist logarithmisch: jeder Tick markiert etwa zehnfach geringere Häufigkeit. Seltene Nachbarn derselben Bandbreite: „Todesdrohungen“ (#67,788), „Tiefkühltruhe“ (#67,785), „tok“ (#67,789). Unter 2,684 „T“-Lemmata liegt „Timbuktu“ bei #67,787. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

Timbuktu is uncommon German at frequency #67,787 among 2,684 “T” headwords, classed as aproper noun, transcribed [tɪmˈbʊktu]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "deutsche Bezeichnung der Stadt Tombouctou in Mali".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for Timbuktu, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, 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 its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct German form is Timbuktu, spelled T-I-M-B-U-K-T-U.

Definition

  1. 1
    deutsche Bezeichnung der Stadt Tombouctou in Mali

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Timbuktu ist eine Oasenstadt in Mali.

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 "Timbuktu"?
"Timbuktu" is spelled T-I-M-B-U-K-T-U. The IPA pronunciation is [tɪmˈbʊktu].
What does "Timbuktu" mean?
As a proper noun, "Timbuktu" means: deutsche Bezeichnung der Stadt Tombouctou in Mali
How do you pronounce "Timbuktu"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Timbuktu" is [tɪmˈbʊktu]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Timbuktu" come from?
"Timbuktu" is a German word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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 "Timbuktu", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Unglücke#67,810vergüten#67,832verlinke#67,838staunten#67,734

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list