Which to use
“bebí” and “besé” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #46,362
- “bebí” frequency rank
- #41,760
- “besé” frequency rank
- 88122
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bebí | besé |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de beber o de beberse. | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de besar. |
Where the eye mixes bebí and besé
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. bebí and besé follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses bebí with besé
A purely visual mix-up. bebí ([beˈβ̞i]) and besé ([beˈse]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 88122, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bebí is recorded at frequency rank #46,362, classified as averb, pronounced [beˈβ̞i]. besé is at rank #41,760, tagged as averb, pronounced [beˈse].
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 88122, this pair ranks #3,977 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of bebí vs besé
Shared letters: be. Private to "bebí": í. Private to "besé": sé.
"bebí" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "besé" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "bebí" for "besé" ever safe?
Which is more common, "bebí" or "besé"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "bebí" and "besé" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "bebí" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "besé" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #3,977 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "bebí" and "besé" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bebí vs ber". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #3,977 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.