Which to use
“aquí” is an adverb and “atún” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #143
- “aquí” frequency rank
- #12,765
- “atún” frequency rank
- 12908
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | aquí | atún |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | En la proximidad del que habla o comunica. | (Thunnus spp.) Cualquiera de una docena de especies de peces oceánicos de la familia de los escómbridos, grandes nadadores y de gran tamaño; su carne, muy apreciada como alimento, es de color rojo intenso, excepcional entre los peces, por su alto contenido de mioglobina. Varias especies están en riesgo de extinción por la sobrepesca. |
Where the eye mixes aquí and atún
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence. aquí (VCVV) and atún (VCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: aquí vs atún
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: aquí is [aˈki] while atún is [aˈt̪ũn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adverb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12908, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
aquí is recorded at frequency rank #143, classified as anadv, pronounced [aˈki]. atún is at rank #12,765, tagged as anoun, pronounced [aˈt̪ũn].
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 12908, this pair ranks #289,825 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of aquí vs atún
Shared letters: a. Private to "aquí": quí. Private to "atún": ntú.
"aquí" · 4 letters · shape VCVV · "atún" · 4 letters · shape VCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "aquí" for "atún" ever safe?
Which is more common, "aquí" or "atún"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "aquí" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "atún" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #289,825 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "aquí" and "atún" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "atl vs atún". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #289,825 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.