FAQ
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QUESTION

Are there double consonants in German that differentiate between words? Like in Italian where for example, "casa" means house and "cassa" means box.

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This question is related to the question "Is there a difference in pronunciation between “ist” and “isst”?" in which it was originally asked.

ANSWER

1. Yes, there are double consonants in German that differentiate between words.

   Watte (cotton)

   Wate (facet)

   You can look through this list of words with double consonants and search for more yourself. Happy hunting!

2. Minimalpaare mit Vorkommen an Doppelkonsonanten (vgl. Vokalquantität)

   Bann vs. Bahn
   Mitte vs. Miete
   Pollen vs. Polen
   Busse vs. Buße
   bette vs. bete vs. bäte
   Hölle vs. Höhle
   fülle vs. fühle
   

   The latter is taken from Vokalquantität at Wikipedia.

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