espiar

[esˈpjaɾ]

/[esˈpjaɾ]/ verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“espiar” has 8 generated spelling variants in the Spanish index at frequency #17,692. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#17,692
frequency rank, Spanish
5,243
“E” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
13
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Observar disimuladamente y en secreto lo que alguien hace.

Corpus desk

Index ES-espiar · espiar · Spanish

espiar · rank #17,692 · 8 variants · 13 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #17,692
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 13 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,243
  • PHOTO-FINISH escuchaste

Nearest frequency peer: escuchaste (-1 rank slots)

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Pares de rango junto al imán ortográfico “espiar”

Misma franja de rareza: útil si un typo cae en un lema vecino

corpus weight

What this shows “espiar” está entre estos pares FrequencyWords; la profundidad de typo se mide aparte en el gráfico de distancia de edición.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

espiar vs estar
67% similar
espiar vs espina
67% similar
espiar vs espino
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for espiar
PropertyValue
Headwordespiar
LanguageSpanish
Part of speechVerb
IPA[esˈpjaɾ]
Letters6
Frequency rank#17,692
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs13
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Frecuencia del imán ortográfico “espiar”

Esta escala corre desde el núcleo del español cotidiano (izquierda) hasta el rastro de formas rara vez usadas (derecha).espiarcae aquí:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

La escala es logarítmica (cada marca ≈ 10× más rara). En la misma franja de rareza aparecen “escuchaste” (#17,691), “equipados” (#17,690), “envié” (#17,689). Entre 5,243 lemas con “E”, “espiar” va en #17,692. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around espiar (IPA [esˈpjaɾ]), averb. Corpus frequency is #17,692 among 5,243 “E” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for espiar, with forms such as "epsiar", "esipar", and "espair". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 13 confusable-pair relationships, "estar", "espina", "espino", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct Spanish form is espiar, spelled E-S-P-I-A-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Observar disimuladamente y en secreto lo que alguien hace.
  2. 2
    En particular, espiar para obtener información.
  3. 3
    Ansiar, anhelar.

Synonyms

acecharvigiaravizorarobservarvicharojearatalayarhusmearfisgarcotillearinquirirnariguearesculcar

This word in other languages

spy(English)spionieren(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • epsiar
  • esipar
  • espair
  • espiarr
  • espira
  • esppiar
  • esspiar
  • sepiar

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of espiar - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

epsiar2esipar2espair2espiarr1espira2esppiar1esspiar1sepiar2
Edit distance from "espiar"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 Spanish corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "espiar"?
"espiar" is spelled E-S-P-I-A-R. The IPA pronunciation is [esˈpjaɾ].
What does "espiar" mean?
As a verb, "espiar" means: Observar disimuladamente y en secreto lo que alguien hace.
What words are commonly confused with "espiar"?
"espiar" is commonly confused with "estar", "espina", "espino". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "espiar"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "espiar" is [esˈpjaɾ]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "espiar" come from?
"espiar" is a Spanish word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar Spanish words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "espiar", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked Spanish headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

fernet#17,706fresas#17,711duende#17,671garden#17,713

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

cómica8 variantsJackie8 variantsLaredo8 variantslírica8 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list