unterstehen

[ʊntɐˈʃteːən]

/[ʊntɐˈʃteːən]/ verb

The verdict

“unterstehen” has 17 generated spelling variants in the German index at frequency #32,827. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#32,827
frequency rank, German
2,159
“U” headwords
17
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - untergeben sein

Corpus desk

Index DE-unterstehen · unterstehen · German

unterstehen · rank #32,827 · 17 variants · 7 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #32,827
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 7 pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 17 variants
  • BOOK-MID 2,159
  • PHOTO-FINISH unterhaltsamer

Nearest frequency peer: unterhaltsamer (-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.

Rang-Peers am Tippfehler-Magneten „unterstehen“

Gleiche Seltenheitsbandbreite: nützlich, wenn ein Tippfehler auf ein Peer-Lemma trifft

corpus weight

What this shows „unterstehen“ sitzt unter diesen FrequencyWords-Peers; die Tippfehlertiefe steht separat im Edit-Distance-Chart.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

unterstehen vs untersten
82% similar
unterstehen vs untersteht
82% similar
unterstehen vs untersuchen
82% similar

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

Key facts for unterstehen
PropertyValue
Headwordunterstehen
LanguageGerman
Part of speechVerb
IPA[ʊntɐˈʃteːən]
Letters11
Frequency rank#32,827
Misspellings tracked17
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Häufigkeitslage von Tippfehler-Magnet „unterstehen“

Diese Skala geht vom Kern des Alltagdeutschen (links) bis zum seltenen Langschwanz (rechts).unterstehenliegt hier neben dem Tippfehler-Druck:

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

Die Ticks laufen logarithmisch; jeder ist rund zehnmal seltener. Peers derselben Seltenheitsbandbreite: „unterhaltsamer“ (#32,826), „Unterführung“ (#32,825), „untypisch“ (#32,829). Unter 2,159 „U“-Lemmata liegt „unterstehen“ bei #32,827. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 17 spelling variants around unterstehen (IPA [ʊntɐˈʃteːən]), averb. Corpus frequency is #32,827 among 2,159 “U” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 17 likely wrong-spelling variants for unterstehen, with forms such as "nuterstehen", "unetrstehen", and "unnterstehen". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 7 confusable-pair relationships, "untersten", "untersteht", "untersuchen", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct German form is unterstehen, spelled U-N-T-E-R-S-T-E-H-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    untergeben sein
  2. 2
    eine an sich unangemessene oder verbotene Handlungsmöglichkeit wahrnehmen

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Die Kompanie untersteht dem Kommando von Hauptmann Knicker.
  2. „So erklärte ich ihm, für diese Fahrt sei er der Kapitän und wir unterstünden seinen Befehlen; ich wolle das Nötigste tun, damit sie aufs I-Tüpfelchen ausgeführt würden.“

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • nuterstehen
  • unetrstehen
  • unnterstehen
  • unterrstehen
  • untersethen
  • untersstehen
  • untersteehn
  • unterstehenn
  • unterstehhen
  • unterstehne
  • unterstheen
  • untersttehen
  • untertsehen
  • untesrtehen
  • untrestehen
  • untterstehen
  • utnerstehen

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of unterstehen - 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.

nuterstehen2unetrstehen2unnterstehen1unterrstehen1untersethen2untersstehen1untersteehn2unterstehenn1
Edit distance from "unterstehen"

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 "unterstehen"?
"unterstehen" is spelled U-N-T-E-R-S-T-E-H-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is [ʊntɐˈʃteːən].
What does "unterstehen" mean?
As a verb, "unterstehen" means: untergeben sein
What words are commonly confused with "unterstehen"?
"unterstehen" is commonly confused with "untersten", "untersteht", "untersuchen". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "unterstehen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "unterstehen" is [ʊntɐˈʃteːən]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "unterstehen" come from?
"unterstehen" 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.

Similar German words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "unterstehen", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (17 here; floor ≥5).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list