zerreiben

[t͡sɛɐ̯ˈʁaɪ̯bn̩]

/[t͡sɛɐ̯ˈʁaɪ̯bn̩]/ verb

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency German
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - etwas durch reiben zerkleinern

Corpus desk

Index DE-zerreiben · zerreiben · German

zerreiben · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 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 zerreiben
PropertyValue
Headwordzerreiben
LanguageGerman
Part of speechVerb
IPA[t͡sɛɐ̯ˈʁaɪ̯bn̩]
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Wo “zerreiben” in der deutschen Häufigkeit sitzt

zerreibenliegt außerhalb der 100.000 häufigsten deutschen Wörter, im Langschwanz technischer, archaischer oder seltener Formen, genau dort, wo Schreibzweifeln zuschlagen.

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

Rare enough to double-check

zerreiben is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed [t͡sɛɐ̯ˈʁaɪ̯bn̩]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for zerreiben in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular German conventions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct German form is zerreiben, spelled Z-E-R-R-E-I-B-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    etwas durch reiben zerkleinern
  2. 2
    eine feindliche Truppe vollständig auseinandertreiben, auch übertragen für andere Gruppierungen verwendet

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Die Krankenschwester zerreibt die Tablette mit einem Mörser.
  2. Die Parteispitze zerrieb sich an internen Querelen.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

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.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "zerreiben"?
"zerreiben" is spelled Z-E-R-R-E-I-B-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is [t͡sɛɐ̯ˈʁaɪ̯bn̩].
What does "zerreiben" mean?
As a verb, "zerreiben" means: etwas durch reiben zerkleinern
How do you pronounce "zerreiben"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "zerreiben" is [t͡sɛɐ̯ˈʁaɪ̯bn̩]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "zerreiben" come from?
"zerreiben" 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.

What to do next

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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