angst
/ˈeɪ̯ŋ(k)st/noun, verb
angst is spelled A-N-G-S-T: 5 letters and one syllable. It appears 1.8 times per million words in written English, the 20,629th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, angst means “Emotional turmoil; painful sadness; anguish” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in angst?
| Letters | 5: A-N-G-S-T |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 |
| In writing | 1.8 times per million words; the 20,629th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is angst?
Angst appears 1.8 times per million words in written English, the 20,629th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce angst?
- /ˈæŋ(k)st/
- [ˈæŋ(k)st]
- US /ˈeɪ̯ŋ(k)st/
Angst has one syllable.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-angst.ogg, En-us-angst.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with angst?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as angst (/eɪŋst/).
Spelled with the same letters in another order: stang.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of angst
- angsts present, singular, he/she/it
- angsting participle, present
- angsted participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does angst mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Emotional turmoil; painful sadness; anguish.
- 2
A feeling of acute but vague anxiety or apprehension often accompanied by depression, especially philosophical anxiety.
- 3
Fiction focusing on characters experiencing strong emotions and conflicts with other characters.
verb
- 1
informalTo suffer angst; to fret.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Angst in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | angoisse , angoisse existentielle |
| German | Aufgewühltheit , Angst |
| Portuguese | angústia , aflição |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does angst come from?
Borrowed from German Angst or Danish angst; attested since the 19th century in English translations of the works of Søren Kierkegaard. Initially capitalized (as in German and contemporaneous Danish), the term first began to be written with a lowercase "a" around 1940–44. The German and Danish terms both derive from Middle High German angest, from Old High German angust, from Proto-Germanic *angustiz; related to anguish, Dutch angst, Swedish ångest.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).