Deutsch homophones

be/bee

"be" is a verb; "bee" is a noun - grammar picks the spelling, not sound. Size rank #38 of 483 German groups.

Data vintage

Grammar picks the spelling

Same sound, different grammar: "be" arrives as a verb, while "bee" is a noun. Once the sentence role is fixed, only one spelling fits.

Spelling pairs in this cluster

  • Shared stem "be" then splits - "be" (2 letters) vs "bee" (3).

Orthographic DNA of this cluster

Shared letters across be, bee: be. Private letters are the ones only one spelling owns: the eye's fastest tell once sound is out of the picture.

  • be

    2 letters · 1 vowels · shape CV

    Inventory be · no private letters vs siblings

  • bee

    3 letters · 2 vowels · shape CVV

    Inventory be · no private letters vs siblings

Pick the spelling from the meaning

  • Write "be" when you mean: sein, existieren
  • Write "bee" when you mean: Insekt einer Serie von Familien aus der Ordnung der Hautflügler; Biene

Each spelling

be

verb · /biː/ · #1,621 frequency

sein, existieren

bee

noun · /biː/ · #22,268 frequency

Insekt einer Serie von Familien aus der Ordnung der Hautflügler; Biene

Nearby German homophone groups

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

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