zébu

[ze.by]

/[ze.by]/ noun

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

The verdict

“zébu” is uncommon German (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency German
4
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 2, 2026) - Zebu, Buckelrind (Bos taurus indicus)

Corpus desk

Index DE-zebu · zébu · German

zébu · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MID 4 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "Z" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for zébu
PropertyValue
Headwordzébu
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ze.by]
Letters4
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “zébu” sits in German frequency

zébu falls outside the top-100,000 ranked German words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

zébu is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed [ze.by]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Zebu, Buckelrind (Bos taurus indicus)".

zébu has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular German conventions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct German form is zébu, spelled Z-É-B-U.

Definition

  1. 1
    Zebu, Buckelrind (Bos taurus indicus)

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. « Le zébu ou petit bœuf de Belon n’a aucun des caractères du bubalus, il en diffère presqu’autant qu’un bœuf diffère d’une gazelle ; »

Synonyms

bœuf à bosse

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 2, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "zébu"?
"zébu" is spelled Z-É-B-U. The IPA pronunciation is [ze.by].
What does "zébu" mean?
As a noun, "zébu" means: Zebu, Buckelrind (Bos taurus indicus)
How do you pronounce "zébu"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "zébu" is [ze.by]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "zébu" come from?
"zébu" 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.
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