Zelluloid

[t͡sɛluˈlɔɪ̯t]

/[t͡sɛluˈlɔɪ̯t]/ noun

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

The verdict

“Zelluloid” is uncommon German (frequency #88,559 among 1,996 “Z” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#88,559
frequency rank, German
1,996
“Z” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - durchsichtiger, elastischer Kunststoff, der, da man ihn einfach schmelzen und formen kann, eine Massenfertigung ermöglichte

Corpus desk

Index DE-zelluloid · Zelluloid · German

Zelluloid · rank #88,559 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #88,559
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,996
  • PHOTO-FINISH zeitgeschicht…

Nearest frequency peer: zeitgeschichtliche (-1 rank slots)

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.

Langschwanz-Ränge nahe „Zelluloid“

Dünnes Band: Balken invertieren den Rang, seltenere Formen wirken kürzer

corpus weight

What this shows Langschwanz-Sicht: wo „Zelluloid“ gegen ähnlich seltene deutsche Ränge sitzt.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for Zelluloid
PropertyValue
HeadwordZelluloid
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[t͡sɛluˈlɔɪ̯t]
Letters9
Frequency rank#88,559
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „Zelluloid“ im Deutschen

Diese Skala geht vom Kern des Alltagdeutschen (links) bis zum seltenen Langschwanz (rechts).Zelluloidfällt in diesen Seltenheitsbereich:

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

Die Ticks laufen logarithmisch; jeder ist rund zehnmal seltener. Seltene Nachbarn derselben Bandbreite: „zeitgeschichtliche“ (#88,558), „Zeltstadt“ (#88,560), „Zauberwald“ (#88,557). Unter 1,996 „Z“-Lemmata liegt „Zelluloid“ bei #88,559. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

Zelluloid is uncommon German at frequency #88,559 among 1,996 “Z” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed [t͡sɛluˈlɔɪ̯t]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for Zelluloid, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, 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 best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct German form is Zelluloid, spelled Z-E-L-L-U-L-O-I-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    durchsichtiger, elastischer Kunststoff, der, da man ihn einfach schmelzen und formen kann, eine Massenfertigung ermöglichte
  2. 2
    Träger aus [1] für die chemischen Substanzen auf einem Film

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. „Fritz Klatte untersuchte [Vinylchlorid] genauer und erkannte Vielversprechendes: Es verhielt sich nämlich ganz ähnlich wie Zelluloid. Das war damals der letzte Schrei - Filme wurden aus Zelluloid hergestellt, Knöpfe, Brillen und Spielzeugpuppen. Und das trotz eines fatalen Nachteils: Wird Zelluloid zu trocken, geht es in Flammen auf.“
  2. „[…] zwischen den modernen Plastiksorten führt das Kunstharz aus Milchproteinen [Kasein] nur ein Nischendasein. Dasselbe gilt für die anderen Vorgänger der heutigen Plastikprodukte: das Ebonit und den Schellack, das Zelluloid und die Vulkanfiber.“

Synonyms

ZellhornFilm

This word in other languages

celluloid(English)celluloïd(Français)

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 "Zelluloid"?
"Zelluloid" is spelled Z-E-L-L-U-L-O-I-D. The IPA pronunciation is [t͡sɛluˈlɔɪ̯t].
What does "Zelluloid" mean?
As a noun, "Zelluloid" means: durchsichtiger, elastischer Kunststoff, der, da man ihn einfach schmelzen und formen kann, eine Massenfertigung ermöglichte
How do you pronounce "Zelluloid"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Zelluloid" is [t͡sɛluˈlɔɪ̯t]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "Zelluloid" come from?
"Zelluloid" 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.

Similar German words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "Zelluloid", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 9 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Zeltstadt#88,560Zahnstein#88,553Windkanal#88,530Wildgänse#88,527

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list