zerknirscht

[t͡sɛɐ̯ˈknɪʁʃt]

/[t͡sɛɐ̯ˈknɪʁʃt]/ adj

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

The verdict

“zerknirscht” is uncommon German (frequency #82,387 among 37,643 “Z” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#82,387
frequency rank, German
37,643
“Z” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - sich seiner Schuld, seines Versagens bewusst und daher niedergeschlagen

Key facts for zerknirscht
PropertyValue
Headwordzerknirscht
LanguageGerman
Part of speechAdjective
IPA[t͡sɛɐ̯ˈknɪʁʃt]
Letters11
Frequency rank#82,387
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “zerknirscht” 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). zerknirscht 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

zerknirscht is uncommon German at frequency #82,387 among 37,643 “Z” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed [t͡sɛɐ̯ˈknɪʁʃt]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "sich seiner Schuld, seines Versagens bewusst und daher niedergeschlagen".

zerknirscht has no tracked misspelling variants, suggesting the orthography follows predictable German patterns. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct German form is zerknirscht, spelled Z-E-R-K-N-I-R-S-C-H-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    sich seiner Schuld, seines Versagens bewusst und daher niedergeschlagen

This word in other languages

compungido(Español)

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 "zerknirscht"?
"zerknirscht" is spelled Z-E-R-K-N-I-R-S-C-H-T. The IPA pronunciation is [t͡sɛɐ̯ˈknɪʁʃt].
What does "zerknirscht" mean?
As an adjective, "zerknirscht" means: sich seiner Schuld, seines Versagens bewusst und daher niedergeschlagen
How do you pronounce "zerknirscht"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "zerknirscht" is [t͡sɛɐ̯ˈknɪʁʃt]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "zerknirscht" come from?
"zerknirscht" 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 “zerknirscht”

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

  • The one correct German spelling is Z-E-R-K-N-I-R-S-C-H-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [t͡sɛɐ̯ˈknɪʁʃt] (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