anfangs

\ˈanfaŋs\

/\ˈanfaŋs\/ adv

The verdict

“anfangs” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adverb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
7
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Au début, au commencement, initialement.

Corpus desk

Index FR-anfangs · anfangs · French

anfangs · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "A" 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 anfangs
PropertyValue
Headwordanfangs
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdverb
IPA\ˈanfaŋs\
Letters7
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « anfangs » en français

anfangsreste hors des 100.000 mots français les plus fréquents, dans la longue queue du vocabulaire technique, archaïque ou rare, là où le doute d'orthographe frappe.

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

Rare enough to double-check

anfangs is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadverb, transcribed \ˈanfaŋs\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Au début, au commencement, initialement.".

anfangs has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular French conventions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct French form is anfangs, spelled A-N-F-A-N-G-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Au début, au commencement, initialement.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Anfangs konnten sich einige Privilegierte mit den Wachposten an den Stadttoren absprechen, die einwilligten, Botschaften hinauszubefördern.
  2. Nina möchte jede freie Zeit nutzen. Wenn sie Hummeln im Hintern hat, ist sie erst zufrieden, wenn etwas unternommen wurde. Anfangs hat mich das überfordert und auch genervt.

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 "anfangs"?
"anfangs" is spelled A-N-F-A-N-G-S. The IPA pronunciation is \ˈanfaŋs\.
What does "anfangs" mean?
As an adverb, "anfangs" means: Au début, au commencement, initialement.
How do you pronounce "anfangs"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "anfangs" is \ˈanfaŋs\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "anfangs" come from?
"anfangs" is a French word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list