Ys

[…]

/[…]/ noun

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

The verdict

“Ys” is uncommon German (frequency #81,192 among 897 “Y” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#81,192
frequency rank, German
897
“Y” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Plural des Substantivs Y

Key facts for Ys
PropertyValue
HeadwordYs
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[…]
Letters2
Frequency rank#81,192
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Ys” 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). Ys 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

Ys is uncommon German at frequency #81,192 among 897 “Y” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed […]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Plural des Substantivs Y".

Zero misspellings are on record for Ys in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct German form is Ys, spelled Y-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Plural des Substantivs Y

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 "Ys"?
"Ys" is spelled Y-S. The IPA pronunciation is […].
What does "Ys" mean?
As a noun, "Ys" means: Plural des Substantivs Y
How do you pronounce "Ys"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Ys" is […]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Ys" come from?
"Ys" 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 “Ys”

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

  • The one correct German spelling is Y-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as […] (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