zephyr

[ˈzefəʳ]

/[ˈzefəʳ]/ noun

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

The verdict

“zephyr” is uncommon German (frequency #83,553 among 1,996 “Z” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#83,553
frequency rank, German
1,996
“Z” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - ein feuchtwarmer Westwind im Mittelmeerraum

Corpus desk

Index DE-zephyr · zephyr · German

zephyr · rank #83,553 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #83,553
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,996
  • PHOTO-FINISH Zentrifuge

Nearest frequency peer: Zentrifuge (-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 „zephyr“

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

corpus weight

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

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for zephyr
PropertyValue
Headwordzephyr
LanguageGerman
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈzefəʳ]
Letters6
Frequency rank#83,553
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „zephyr“ im Deutschen

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

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

Die Ticks laufen logarithmisch; jeder ist rund zehnmal seltener. Seltene Nachbarn derselben Bandbreite: „Zentrifuge“ (#83,552), „zersplitterte“ (#83,554), „Zentralismus“ (#83,551). Unter 1,996 „Z“-Lemmata liegt „zephyr“ bei #83,553. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

zephyr is uncommon German at frequency #83,553 among 1,996 “Z” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed [ˈzefəʳ]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 6 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for zephyr, a sign its spelling follows regular German conventions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct German form is zephyr, spelled Z-E-P-H-Y-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    ein feuchtwarmer Westwind im Mittelmeerraum
  2. 2
    Westwind, warmer milder Westwind
  3. 3
    eine leichte Brise, ein laues Lüftchen
  4. 4
    leichtes Gewebe, leichter Baumwollstoff, leichtes Garn (Zephyrgarn), leichte Kleidungsstücke
  5. 5
    etwas, das luftig, unwirklich, vergehend ist
  6. 6
    Der "Chinook" (West-Föhn der Rocky Mountains) wird im US-Bundesstaat Colorado gelegentlich auch als "zephyr" bezeichnet. Neben "zephyr" ist in Colorado für den Westföhn jedoch auch die Bezeichnung "Pacific wind" gebräuchlich.

Synonyms

airbreezedraughtgentle windwest windwind

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 "zephyr"?
"zephyr" is spelled Z-E-P-H-Y-R. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈzefəʳ].
What does "zephyr" mean?
As a noun, "zephyr" means: ein feuchtwarmer Westwind im Mittelmeerraum
How do you pronounce "zephyr"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "zephyr" is [ˈzefəʳ]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "zephyr" come from?
"zephyr" 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.

Similar German words by spelling shape

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

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked German headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Widget#83,523Werdau#83,516Ötztal#83,595victim#83,480

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list