bean
/ˈbi(ː)n/noun, verb
bean is spelled B-E-A-N: 4 letters and one syllable. It appears 9.5 times per million words in written English, the 7,338th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a noun, bean means “Any plant of several genera of the taxonomic family Fabaceae that produces large edible seeds or edible seedpods” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of bean is beans.
How many letters and syllables are in bean?
| Letters | 4: B-E-A-N |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 |
| In writing | 9.5 times per million words; the 7,338th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is bean?
Bean appears 9.5 times per million words in written English, the 7,338th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce bean?
- /ˈbi(ː)n/
- [ˈbɪin]
Bean has one syllable.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-bean.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with bean?
No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as bean.
Spelled with the same letters in another order: bane, nabe.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of bean
- beans plural, present, singular, he/she/it
- beaning participle, present
- beaned participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does bean mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
Any plant of several genera of the taxonomic family Fabaceae that produces large edible seeds or edible seedpods.
- 2
The large edible seed of such a plant (for example, a broad bean, navy bean, or garbanzo bean).
- 3
The edible seedpod of such a plant.
Green beans, also called French beans, can be pickled.
- 4
The bean-like seed of certain other plants, such as a vanilla bean or (especially) a coffee bean.
- 5
An object resembling a pea or bean in shape, often made from plastic or styrofoam and used in large numbers as packing material or as stuffing for beanbags and similar items.
- 6
slangThe head or brain.
- 7
slangThe human clitoris.
- 8
slangA person; especially, a baby.
i dont want boid (whoever said that) he is mean. boid is a mean bean.
verb
- 1
To hit with a projectile, especially a deliberately aimed blow to the head.
The pitcher beaned the batter, rather than letting him hit another home run.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Bean in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | Bohnenpflanze , Bohne , Bean |
| French | haricot |
| Portuguese | feijão |
| Spanish | haba, frijol, habichuela, judía, alubia, poroto |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does bean come from?
From Middle English bene, from Old English bēan, from Proto-West Germanic *baunu, from Proto-Germanic *baunō (“bean”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰabʰ- (“bean”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).