bestehen

\bəˈʃteːən\

/\bəˈʃteːən\/ verb

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency French
8
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Réussir, passer avec succès un examen, une épreuve.

Corpus desk

Index FR-bestehen · bestehen · French

bestehen · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "B" 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 bestehen
PropertyValue
Headwordbestehen
LanguageFrench
Part of speechVerb
IPA\bəˈʃteːən\
Letters8
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « bestehen » en français

bestehenn'entre pas dans le top 100.000 du français: zone de termes techniques, archaïques ou rares.

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

Rare enough to double-check

bestehen is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed \bəˈʃteːən\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for bestehen, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct French form is bestehen, spelled B-E-S-T-E-H-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Réussir, passer avec succès un examen, une épreuve.
  2. 2
    Persister, persévérer, insister (sur quelque chose).
  3. 3
    Consister en, se composer de, être composé de.
  4. 4
    Consister en, se composer de, être composé de.
  5. 5
    Exister, persister.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Detlef hat eine Prüfung nicht bestanden und will jetzt das Studium abbrechen. -- Was, wegen einer einzigen Prüfung gleich das Handtuch werfen? Ich hoffe, das überlegt er sich noch einmal.
  2. Nach 24 Jahren sitze ich wieder in einem Fahrschulauto. Mit Prüfer Christian Schmid vom TÜV will ich testen, ob die Prüfungen schwerer geworden sind – und ob ich bestehen würde. Ich bin zuversichtlich, als ich starte.

Synonyms

Antonyms

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 "bestehen"?
"bestehen" is spelled B-E-S-T-E-H-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is \bəˈʃteːən\.
What does "bestehen" mean?
As a verb, "bestehen" means: Réussir, passer avec succès un examen, une épreuve.
How do you pronounce "bestehen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bestehen" is \bəˈʃteːən\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "bestehen" come from?
"bestehen" is a French 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list