Here is a Dutch spelling trap with no audible escape: ij and ei sound exactly the same, yet they are different spellings you have to choose between. Even Dutch children drill this for years. Here is why it happens and how to cope.
One sound, two spellings
The digraphs ij (the lange ij, “long ij”) and ei (the korte ei, “short ei”) are pronounced identically, roughly like the vowel in English “eye” but tighter. As Dutch grammar references note, there is no sound difference, so you cannot hear which to write, the spelling is fixed per word and must be learned. The Taalunie advice service confirms there is no rule that reliably predicts which to use.
This is exactly why, when Dutch people spell a word aloud, they say lange ij or korte ei to make clear which one they mean. It is not pedantry; it is the only way to dictate the spelling.
Patterns that help (but no perfect rule)
Some tendencies, per Onze Taal:
| Tends to be ij | Tends to be ei |
|---|---|
| many verbs: blijven, kijken, schrijven | many short words: klein, trein, geit |
| the ending -lijk: vriendelijk, eigenlijk | the ending -heid: vrijheid (ei in heid) |
| -ij nouns: bakkerij, woestijn | reis, weide, eik, leid- |
These are tendencies, not laws, there are plenty of exceptions. The honest method is to learn high-frequency words by sight and to read a lot, which is how the spelling settles in.
The capital: IJ, not Ij
Because ij acts as a single letter, both parts are capitalised together at the start of a word:
- IJsland (Iceland), IJmuiden, the IJ (Amsterdam’s waterway).
Writing Ijsland with a lowercase j is a giveaway mistake. In crosswords and some fonts, ij even occupies a single square. This ties into the wider Dutch spelling rules.
A few high-value pairs to bank
| ij | ei |
|---|---|
| wijn (wine) | trein (train) |
| prijs (price) | prei (leek) |
| rijp (ripe) | reis (journey) |
| blijven (to stay) | klein (small) |
Note near-pairs like wij (we) vs wei (whey/meadow), spelled differently, sound the same.
Where it connects
The other early sound-and-spelling trap is the ui, ou and eu vowels, and the famous one is the Dutch g. Fixing all three early is cheaper than fixing them in year three, which is the argument in how closely related Dutch is to English.
The bottom line
ij and ei sound identical, so spelling them is pure word-knowledge: there is no rule that always works. Lean on tendencies (verbs and -lijk often ij; -heid and many short words ei), learn frequent words by sight, and remember to capitalise ij as IJ. When in doubt, check, and read enough that the right spelling starts to look right.
Learn it in five minutes a day
Learn Dutch For Expats is an iOS app in early access that drills the ij and ei words by sight, blijven, klein, vriendelijk, trein, in five-minute lessons, so the spelling trap that sounds identical stops being a guess. Spelling traps are drilled, not explained, which is what short daily practice is for. It is not purchasable yet; the waitlist is the way in.
Frequently asked questions
Do ‘ij’ and ‘ei’ sound different in Dutch?
No, they sound exactly the same. The ij (called the lange ij) and ei (the korte ei) are two spellings of one identical sound, like the vowel in English ‘eye’ but tighter. Because there is no audible difference, you cannot hear which to write; the correct spelling has to be learned word by word. That is why Dutch people, when spelling aloud, specify lange ij or korte ei to make clear which one they mean.
How do I know whether to write ij or ei?
There is no perfect rule, but patterns help. Many verbs and the common ending -lijk use ij (blijven, kijken, schrijven, vriendelijk, eigenlijk). The ending -heid and many short everyday words use ei (klein, trein, geit, reis, weide). Beyond patterns, you mostly learn high-frequency words by sight and by reading a lot. When unsure, a quick dictionary check settles it.
Why is the capital of ‘ij’ written as ‘IJ’?
Because ij behaves as a single letter in Dutch, both parts are capitalised together at the start of a word: IJsland (Iceland), IJ (the waterway in Amsterdam), IJmuiden. Writing ‘Ijsland’ with a lowercase j is a common mistake. In some fonts and crosswords ij even takes a single square. So treat ij as one unit, including when you capitalise it.
