widow

[ˈwɪdəʊ]

/[ˈwɪdəʊ]/ noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“widow” is uncommon German (frequency #68,890 among 38,697 “W” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#68,890
frequency rank, German
38,697
“W” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Witwe

Key facts for widow
PropertyValue
Headwordwidow
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈwɪdəʊ]
Letters5
Frequency rank#68,890
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “widow” 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). widow lands here:

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

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

Rare enough to double-check

widow is uncommon German at frequency #68,890 among 38,697 “W” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed [ˈwɪdəʊ]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

widow has no tracked misspelling variants, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct German form is widow, spelled W-I-D-O-W.

Definition

  1. 1
    Witwe
  2. 2
    eine einzelne Zeile eines Absatzes, die auf einer neuen Seite steht, während alle anderen Zeilen noch auf der vorherigen Seite stehen; Hurenkind

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 "widow"?
"widow" is spelled W-I-D-O-W. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈwɪdəʊ].
What does "widow" mean?
As a noun, "widow" means: Witwe
How do you pronounce "widow"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "widow" is [ˈwɪdəʊ]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "widow" come from?
"widow" is a German word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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 “widow”

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

  • The one correct German spelling is W-I-D-O-W - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [ˈwɪdəʊ] (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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list