Uncle Sam

[ˌaŋkl̩ˈsɛːm]

/[ˌaŋkl̩ˈsɛːm]/ name

The verdict

“Uncle Sam” is uncommon German (outside the top frequency list), classed as a proper noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency German
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Nationalallegorie der Vereinigten Staaten

Corpus desk

Index DE-uncle-sam · Uncle Sam · German

Uncle Sam · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "U" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for Uncle Sam
PropertyValue
HeadwordUncle Sam
LanguageGerman
Part of speechProper noun
IPA[ˌaŋkl̩ˈsɛːm]
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „Uncle Sam“ im Deutschen

Uncle Samsitzt jenseits der 100.000 häufigsten deutschen Formen, im Schwanz spezialisierten oder seltenen Wortschatzes.

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

Rare enough to double-check

Uncle Sam is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as aproper noun, transcribed [ˌaŋkl̩ˈsɛːm]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Nationalallegorie der Vereinigten Staaten".

Zero misspellings are on record for Uncle Sam in our index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

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. The correct German form is Uncle Sam, spelled U-N-C-L-E- -S-A-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    Nationalallegorie der Vereinigten Staaten

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. „Abgesichert wurde das Kriegsrecht einmal mehr von Uncle Sam, der den Tyrannen Marcos bei seinen Bemühungen unterstützte, nicht nur einen kommunistischen, sondern auch einen muslimischen Aufstand niederzuschlagen.“
  2. „Man zögerte die Entscheidung über meine Einberufung eine Weile hinaus, aber schließlich setzte man mich davon in Kenntnis, dass Uncle Sam mich tatsächlich haben wollte.“

This word in other languages

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.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "Uncle Sam"?
"Uncle Sam" is spelled U-N-C-L-E- -S-A-M. The IPA pronunciation is [ˌaŋkl̩ˈsɛːm].
What does "Uncle Sam" mean?
As a proper noun, "Uncle Sam" means: Nationalallegorie der Vereinigten Staaten
How do you pronounce "Uncle Sam"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Uncle Sam" is [ˌaŋkl̩ˈsɛːm]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Uncle Sam" come from?
"Uncle Sam" 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list