unken

Name: unken, German Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

[ˈʊŋkn̩]

/[ˈʊŋkn̩]/ verb

By PlainSpell Editorial Team · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“unken” is an uncommon German word, ranked #82,257 in German word frequency and used as a verb.

#82,257
frequency rank, German: 5
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - über eine zukünftige/unbekannte Angelegenheit pessimistische Vermutungen anstellen; Zukünftiges pessimistisch betrachten; eine negative Erwartungshaltung haben

Key facts for unken
Property	Value
Headword	unken
Language	German
Part of speech	Verb
IPA	[ˈʊŋkn̩]
Letters	5
Frequency rank	#82,257
Misspellings tracked	0
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “unken” 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). unken lands here:

#82,257

#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 unken is 5 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈʊŋkn̩]. Corpus data places it at rank #82,257 in overall German word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "über eine zukünftige/unbekannte Angelegenheit pessimistische Vermutungen anstellen; Zukünftiges pessimistisch betrachten; eine negative Erwartungshaltung haben".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for unken, a sign its spelling follows regular German conventions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct German form is unken, spelled U-N-K-E-N.

Definition

1
über eine zukünftige/unbekannte Angelegenheit pessimistische Vermutungen anstellen; Zukünftiges pessimistisch betrachten; eine negative Erwartungshaltung haben

Synonyms

schwarzmalen schwarzsehen

This word in other languages

jouer les Cassandre(Français)agourar(Português)

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 "unken"?

"unken" is spelled U-N-K-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈʊŋkn̩].

What does "unken" mean?

As a verb, "unken" means: über eine zukünftige/unbekannte Angelegenheit pessimistische Vermutungen anstellen; Zukünftiges pessimistisch betrachten; eine negative Erwartungshaltung haben

How do you pronounce "unken"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "unken" is [ˈʊŋkn̩]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.

What language does "unken" come from?

"unken" 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.

Using “unken”

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

The one correct German spelling is U-N-K-E-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as [ˈʊŋkn̩] (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

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.