zugzwang

[ˈsuɣ̞swãŋ]

/[ˈsuɣ̞swãŋ]/ noun

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

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency Spanish
8
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Posición en donde el jugador que está obligado a mover, debido a ello, deberá empeorar su posición, de modo tal que sería mejor que pasara su turno lo cual está prohibido.

Key facts for zugzwang
PropertyValue
Headwordzugzwang
LanguageSpanish
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈsuɣ̞swãŋ]
Letters8
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “zugzwang” sits in Spanish frequency

zugzwang falls outside the top-100,000 ranked Spanish 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.

Rare enough to double-check

zugzwang is uncommon Spanish outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed [ˈsuɣ̞swãŋ]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Posición en donde el jugador que está obligado a mover, debido a ello, deberá empeorar su posición, de modo tal que sería mejor que pasara su turno lo cual está prohibido.".

zugzwang doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable Spanish rules. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct Spanish form is zugzwang, spelled Z-U-G-Z-W-A-N-G.

Definition

  1. 1
    Posición en donde el jugador que está obligado a mover, debido a ello, deberá empeorar su posición, de modo tal que sería mejor que pasara su turno lo cual está prohibido.

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 "zugzwang"?
"zugzwang" is spelled Z-U-G-Z-W-A-N-G. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈsuɣ̞swãŋ].
What does "zugzwang" mean?
As a noun, "zugzwang" means: Posición en donde el jugador que está obligado a mover, debido a ello, deberá empeorar su posición, de modo tal que sería mejor que pasara su turno lo cual está prohibido.
How do you pronounce "zugzwang"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "zugzwang" is [ˈsuɣ̞swãŋ]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "zugzwang" come from?
"zugzwang" is a Spanish 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.

Using “zugzwang”

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

  • The one correct Spanish spelling is Z-U-G-Z-W-A-N-G - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [ˈsuɣ̞swãŋ] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more Spanish words and confusable pairs in the same reference. Spanish 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.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list