Unfall

[ˈʊnfal]

/[ˈʊnfal]/ noun

The verdict

“Unfall” is a regularly-used German word, ranked #1,716 in German word frequency and used as a noun.

#1,716
frequency rank, German
6
letters
7
tracked misspellings
4
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Vorfall, bei dem Sachen, Menschen oder Tiere physisch/körperlich zu Schaden kommen

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

Unfall vs Unfälle
71% similar
Unfall vs Unfalls
86% similar
Unfall vs Unfällen
63% similar

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

Key facts for Unfall
PropertyValue
HeadwordUnfall
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈʊnfal]
Letters6
Frequency rank#1,716
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs4
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Unfall” 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). Unfall lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The German entry for Unfall is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈʊnfal]. Corpus data places it at rank #1,716 in overall German word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Vorfall, bei dem Sachen, Menschen oder Tiere physisch/körperlich zu Schaden kommen".

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for Unfall, with forms such as "nufall", "ufnall", and "unafll". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 4 confusable-pair relationships, "Unfälle", "Unfalls", "Unfällen", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct German form is Unfall, spelled U-N-F-A-L-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Vorfall, bei dem Sachen, Menschen oder Tiere physisch/körperlich zu Schaden kommen

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: nufall,ufnall,unafll,unfal,unffall,unflal,unnfall

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Unfall - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

nufall2ufnall2unafll2unfal1unffall1unflal2unnfall1
Edit distance from "Unfall"

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 "Unfall"?
"Unfall" is spelled U-N-F-A-L-L. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈʊnfal].
What does "Unfall" mean?
As a noun, "Unfall" means: Vorfall, bei dem Sachen, Menschen oder Tiere physisch/körperlich zu Schaden kommen
What words are commonly confused with "Unfall"?
"Unfall" is commonly confused with "Unfälle", "Unfalls", "Unfällen". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Unfall"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Unfall" is [ˈʊnfal]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Unfall" come from?
"Unfall" 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 “Unfall”

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

  • The one correct German spelling is U-N-F-A-L-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [ˈʊnfal] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “Unfälle” - see the side-by-side comparison. Unfall vs Unfälle
  • Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words
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