Passau

Name: Passau, English Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

name

By PlainSpell Editorial Team · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“Passau” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a proper noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency English: 6
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - An independent town in the Lower Bavaria region, Bavaria, Germany, on the confluence of Inn and Ilz into Danube.

Key facts for Passau
Property	Value
Headword	Passau
Language	English
Part of speech	Proper noun
Letters	6
Misspellings tracked	0
Confusable pairs	0
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Passau” sits in English frequency

Passau falls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for Passau is 6 letters long, classified as a proper noun. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for Passau, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: From German Passau. Doublet of Batavia and Betawi. The correct English form is Passau, spelled P-A-S-S-A-U.

Definition

1
An independent town in the Lower Bavaria region, Bavaria, Germany, on the confluence of Inn and Ilz into Danube.
2
A rural district of the Lower Bavaria region, Bavaria, partially surrounding but not including the town of Passau, which nevertheless serves as its administrative seat.

Etymology

From German Passau. Doublet of Batavia and Betawi.

This word in other languages

Passau(Deutsch)

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 "Passau"?

"Passau" is spelled P-A-S-S-A-U.

What does "Passau" mean?

As a proper noun, "Passau" means: An independent town in the Lower Bavaria region, Bavaria, Germany, on the confluence of Inn and Ilz into Danube.

What is the origin of the word "Passau"?

From German Passau. Doublet of Batavia and Betawi. See the full etymology section above for more details.

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 “Passau”

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

The one correct English spelling is P-A-S-S-A-U - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words

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.