What's the difference between 蓓 (bèi) and 萌 (méng), both nouns that mean "bud"?

Question

蓓 n. bud (part of 蓓蕾 (bèilěi))
萌 n. bud; vt. sprout, germinate (part of 萌芽 (méngyá))

I asked a student (who happens to have the name 萌) if 蓓 and 萌 are the same, but she said they're different. I'm not sure why though.

My guess from the above is that 蓓 is bud that will turn into a flower, whereas 萌 is more general, and refers to anything that sprouts.

Question: What's the difference between 蓓 and 萌?

Answer 1

Generally:

• 萌 is a verb meaning to bud.

• 蓓 is a noun meaning bud.

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蓓 is usually just a compound character only found in the word 蓓蕾.