Table 1. The spelling of the EE-sound which occurs in 454 common words is completely
unpredictable, with 132 ee, 152 ea, 86 e-e, 7 e, 29 i-e, 31 ie, 12 ei
and 5 other graphemes.
agree, bee, beech, beef, been, beer, beet, beetle, between, bleed, bleep, breed
breeze, career, cheek, cheer, cheese, cheetah, chimpanzee, creek, creep, deed,
deep, deer, degree, discreet, domineer, dungarees, eel, eerie, employee,
engineer, exceed, fee, feeble, feed, feel, feet, flee, fleece, fleet, free, freeze,
geese, glee, greed, green, greet, guarantee, heel, indeed, interviewee, jamboree,
jeep, jeer, jubilee, keel, keen, keep, knee, kneel, lee, leek, marquee, meek,
meet, need, needle, pedigree, peek, peel, peep, peer, pioneer, preen, proceed, proceeds, queen, queer, reed, reef, reel, referee, refugee, screech, screen, see,
seed, seek, seem, seen, seep, seesaw, settee, sheep, sheer, sheet, sleek, sleep, sleet, sleeve, smithereens, sneer, sneeze, speech, speed, squeeze, steel, steep, steeple, steer, street, succeed, sweep, sweet, teem, teeth, teetotal, thirteen,
three, tree, trustee, tweed, tweezers, volunteer, weed, week, weep, wheedle,
wheel, wheeze, wildebeest
appeal, appear, beach, beacon, bead, beak, beam, bean, beard, beast,
beat, beaver, beneath, bleach, bleak, bleat, breathe, cease, cheap, cheat,
clean, clear, colleague, conceal, congeal, creak, cream, crease, creature,
deal, dean, dear, decrease, defeat, disease, dream, dreary, each, eager,
eagle, ear, ease, east, Easter, eat, eaves, fear, feast, feat, feature,
flea, freak, gear, gleam, glean, grease, heal, heap, hear, heat, heath, heathen,
heave, increase, jeans, knead, leach, lead*, leaf, league, leak, lean, leap, lease,
leash, least, leave, meagre, meal, mean, measles, meat, near, neat, ordeal,
pea, peace, peach, peak, peal, peanut, peat, plea, plead, please, pleat, preach, queasy, reach, read*, real, really, reap, rear, reason, release, repeat, retreat,
reveal, scream, sea, seal, seam, sear, season, seat, sheaf, shear, sheath, smear sneak, speak, spear, squeak, squeal, squeamish, steal, steam, streak, stream,
tea, teach, teak, team, tear*, tease, treacle, treason, treat, treaty, veal, weak,
wean, weary, weasel, weave, wheat, wreak, wreath, year, yeast, zeal
adhere, adhesive, arena, cafeteria, cedar, cereal, chameleon, Chinese, comedian, compete, complete, concrete, convene, convenient, decent, demon, equal, era,
eve, even, evil, experience, exterior, extreme, female fever, frequent, genie,
genius, here, hero, hyena, imperial, inferior, ingredient, interfere, intermediate,
legal, legion, lenient, lever, material, medium, mere, meteor, meter, millipede,
mysterious, obedient, period, persevere, peter, polythene, precede, previous,
query, recent, recess, region, relay, scene, scheme, sequence, sequin, series,
serious, serum, severe, sincere, species, sphere, stampede, strategic, superior,
supreme, swede, tedious, theatre, theme, theory, these, torpedo, trapeze,
vehicle, Venus, zero
be, he, me, she, we, cathedral, secret
albino, antique, aubergine, bikini, clementine, fatigue, guillotine, kiosk, kiwi,
machine, magazine, margarine, marine, mosquito, pizza, plasticine, police,
prestige, ravine, regime, routine, sardine, suite, tambourine, tangerine, trampoline,
trio, unique, vaseline
achieve, belief, believe, brief, chief, diesel, thieve, tier, wield, yield, cavalier,
chandelier, field, fiend, fierce frontier grief, grieve, hygienic, medieval, niece,
piece, pier, pierce, priest, relief, relieve, shield, shriek, siege, thief
*conceive/conceit, deceive/deceit, receive/receipt, ceiling, protein seize, sheikh
weir weird
people, debris, key, ski, quay
