Deutsch homophones
chi/key/qui
"chi" is a pronoun; "key" is a noun - grammar picks the spelling, not sound. Size rank #5 of 483 German groups.
Data vintage
Grammar picks the spelling
Same sound, different grammar: "chi" arrives as a pronoun, while "key" is a noun. Once the sentence role is fixed, only one spelling fits.
Spelling pairs in this cluster
- No shared spelling stem: "chi" is 3 letters, "key" is 3; only the sound ties them.
- No shared spelling stem: "chi" is 3 letters, "qui" is 3; only the sound ties them.
- No shared spelling stem: "key" is 3 letters, "qui" is 3; only the sound ties them.
Orthographic DNA of this cluster
Shared letters across chi, key, qui: none. Private letters are the ones only one spelling owns: the eye's fastest tell once sound is out of the picture.
chi
3 letters · 1 vowels · shape CCV
Inventory chi · private chi
key
3 letters · 2 vowels · shape CVV
Inventory eky · private eky
qui
3 letters · 2 vowels · shape CVV
Inventory iqu · private iqu
Pick the spelling from the meaning
- Write "chi" when you mean: wer
- Write "key" when you mean: Schlüssel
- Write "qui" when you mean: der, die, das; wer, was