villain
[ˈvɪlən]
The verdict
“villain” is outside the top-ranked German vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency German
- 7
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - krimineller Rechtsbrecher
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | villain |
| Language | German |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | [ˈvɪlən] |
| Letters | 7 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “villain” sits in German frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The German entry for villain is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ˈvɪlən]. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
No misspelling variants are generated for villain in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable German patterns. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.
No borrowing history is documented 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 villain, spelled V-I-L-L-A-I-N.
Definition
- 1krimineller Rechtsbrecher
- 2der böse Gegenspieler des Helden in einem Film oder Theaterstück
- 3in vollständiger oder wirtschaftlicher Unfreiheit lebender Mensch
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
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Using “villain”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct German spelling is V-I-L-L-A-I-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as [ˈvɪlən] (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.