zunächst

/[t͡suˈnɛːçst]/ adv

Letters

8 characters

Frequency Rank

#497

in German word usage

Misspellings

13

tracked variants

Confusables

1

similar word pairs

zunächst is anGermanadv. It means: vor einer zeitlichen oder abstrakten Reihenfolge Pronounced [t͡suˈnɛːçst]. It ranks #497 in German word frequency. Often confused with Zuwachs.

Key facts for zunächst
PropertyValue
Headwordzunächst
LanguageGerman
Part of speechAdv
IPA[t͡suˈnɛːçst]
Letters8
Frequency rank#497
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs1
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frequency rank visualization

Position of zunächst in German word frequency (lower rank = more common)

Source: Wordfreq corpus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The German entry for zunächst is 8 letters long, classified as anadv, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [t͡suˈnɛːçst]. Corpus data places it at rank #497 in overall German word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language.Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 13 documented wrong-spelling variants for zunächst, with forms such as "uznächst", "znuächst", and "zuncähst". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 1 confusable-pair relationship, "Zuwachs", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct German form is zunächst, spelled Z-U-N-Ä-C-H-S-T, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    vor einer zeitlichen oder abstrakten Reihenfolge
  2. 2
    am Anfang, zu Beginn
  3. 3
    räumlich benachbart

Synonyms

Antonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: uznächst,znuächst,zuncähst,zunnächst,zunäcchst,zunächhst,zunächsst,zunächstt,zunächts,zunäcsht,zunähcst,zuänchst,zzunächst

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

Relative frequency of common misspelling types for zunächst

Misspelling Variants of "zunächst"

uznächst8znuächst8zuncähst8zunnächst9zunäcchst9zunächhst9zunächsst9zunächstt9
Misspelling Variants of "zunächst"

Frequency rank: #497 in German

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "zunächst"?
"zunächst" is spelled Z-U-N-Ä-C-H-S-T. The IPA pronunciation is [t͡suˈnɛːçst].
What does "zunächst" mean?
As an adv, "zunächst" means: vor einer zeitlichen oder abstrakten Reihenfolge
What words are commonly confused with "zunächst"?
"zunächst" is commonly confused with "Zuwachs". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "zunächst"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "zunächst" is [t͡suˈnɛːçst]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "zunächst" come from?
"zunächst" is a German word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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.

Nearby German words

Other entries that begin with the letter Z in our German index:

Explore PlainSpell

Data Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Frequency data from Wordfreq. Misspellings derived from Hunspell dictionaries.