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How often does the rule 'i before e' actually apply? In our database of 30k+ words, 'i before e' occurs 902 times compared to 'e before i', which occurs 226 times. However, if you look at weighted word frequencies (how often a word actually occurs in English), it's a more interesting story.

A lower number means a word is more common. For example, you actually encounter the word 'their' much more frequently than the word 'believe'. So, since the top words with 'e before i' are just more common, it probably seems like the 'i before e' rule fails more often.