vicious
[ˈvɪʃəs]
The verdict
“vicious” is uncommon German (frequency #86,019 among 49,639 “V” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #86,019
- frequency rank, German
- 49,639
- “V” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - außerordentlich grausam oder gewalttätig in einer Weise, die geeignet ist, jemandem physischen Schaden zuzufügen
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | vicious |
| Language | German |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | [ˈvɪʃəs] |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #86,019 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “vicious” sits in German frequency
Rare enough to double-check
vicious is uncommon German at frequency #86,019 among 49,639 “V” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed [ˈvɪʃəs]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.
The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for vicious, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct German form is vicious, spelled V-I-C-I-O-U-S.
Definition
- 1außerordentlich grausam oder gewalttätig in einer Weise, die geeignet ist, jemandem physischen Schaden zuzufügen
- 2extrem unfreundlich oder unangenehm mit der Absicht, jemandes Gefühle zu verletzen oder jemanden abwertend darzustellen
- 3ungewöhnlich streng oder stark, fähig Schaden zu verursachen
- 4keine Moral kennend, von Lastern befallen (als Person); moralisch unakzeptabel (als Absicht oder Handlung)
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 "vicious"?
What does "vicious" mean?
How do you pronounce "vicious"?
What language does "vicious" come from?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “vicious”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct German spelling is V-I-C-I-O-U-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as [ˈvɪʃəs] (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
Other uncommon German words near this rank
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.