tener

[t̪eˈneɾ]

/[t̪eˈneɾ]/ verb

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

The verdict

“tener” has 7 generated spelling variants in the Spanish index at frequency #118. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#118
frequency rank, Spanish
3,005
“T” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Poseer, ser dueño de algo.

Corpus desk

Index ES-tener · tener · Spanish

tener · rank #118 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-CORE #118
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,005
  • PHOTO-FINISH había

Nearest frequency peer: había (-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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “tener”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “tener” sits against the nearest ranked Spanish headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

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).

tener vs ter
60% similar
tener vs tere
60% similar
tener vs Tier
40% similar

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

Key facts for tener
PropertyValue
Headwordtener
LanguageSpanish
Part of speechVerb
IPA[t̪eˈneɾ]
Letters5
Frequency rank#118
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Dónde se sitúa “tener” en la frecuencia del español

De izquierda a derecha: las pocas palabras que cargan el habla diaria, luego la cola larga casi invisible.tenercae 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 “había” (#117), “trabajo” (#119), “sea” (#116). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 7 spelling variants around tener (IPA [t̪eˈneɾ]), averb. Corpus frequency is #118 among 3,005 “T” headwords. Wiktionary lists 11 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for tener, with forms such as "etner", "teenr", and "tenerr". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "ter", "tere", "Tier", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct Spanish form is tener, spelled T-E-N-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Poseer, ser dueño de algo.
  2. 2
    Sostener.
  3. 3
    Úsase para expresar una sensación.
  4. 4
    Úsase para medir la cantidad de tiempo de existencia de algo o alguien.
  5. 5
    Detener, parar.
  6. 6
    Guardar, cumplir.
  7. 7
    Hospedar o recibir.
  8. 8
    Estar en precisión de hacer una cosa u ocuparse en ella.
  9. 9
    Juzgar, reputar y entender.
  10. 10
    Construido con la preposición en y los adjetivos poco, mucho y otros semejantes, estimar y apreciar.
  11. 11
    Construido con algunos nombres de tiempo, emplear, pasar algún espacio de él en un lugar o sitio, o de cierta manera.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how tener appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Tengo muchos libros.
  2. —¡Espera! —¿Ahora ¡qué!? —Debo amarrar los cordones de mis zapatillas. ¿Podrías tenerme la mochila un momento? Es que pesa mucho. —¡Ash! Siempre ea lo mismo contigo […].

Synonyms

poseer

This word in other languages

have(English)avoir(Français)haben(Deutsch)ter(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • etner
  • teenr
  • tenerr
  • tenner
  • tenre
  • tneer
  • ttener

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of tener - 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.

etner2teenr2tenerr1tenner1tenre2tneer2ttener1
Edit distance from "tener"

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 "tener"?
"tener" is spelled T-E-N-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is [t̪eˈneɾ].
What does "tener" mean?
As a verb, "tener" means: Poseer, ser dueño de algo.
What words are commonly confused with "tener"?
"tener" is commonly confused with "ter", "tere", "Tier". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "tener"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tener" is [t̪eˈneɾ]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "tener" come from?
"tener" 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 "tener", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked Spanish headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

había#117ellos#121antes#114lugar#122

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

tanto7 variantshecho7 variantsnunca7 variantsquiero7 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "tener". Here's where to go from here.

  • "tener" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "ter". View pair
  • 7 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #118 among Spanish headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more Spanish words in the "T" letter cohort. T–Z browse

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list