Bebê or bebé ? why

I was puzzled to see bebê and bebé both used for baby. Why? Do you have a section on accents? I can’t find one by searching?

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I believe that bebê is used in Brazil and bebé in Portugal. This happens very often between both variants of Portuguese, and you’ll find that the circumflex (^) is much more common in Brazilian Portuguese and that the acute (´) is far more common in European Portuguese.

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@caixa.nova, @ward.edan has said it all. Bebê is the spelling in Brazil, and bebé is the spelling in Portugal. The accents are a reflection of how the word is pronounced in each variant: the final E in bebê (circumflex) is pronounced like the E in hey, whereas the last E of bebé (acute accent) is very open, like the E in echo. These accents are briefly discussed in this guide for the pronunciation of different vowels: Pronunciation Guide for European Portuguese Vowels

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