dábamosvsdejamosWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“dábamos” and “dejamos” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#36,541
“dábamos” frequency rank
#3,314
“dejamos” frequency rank
39855
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature dábamos dejamos
Definition Primera persona del plural (nosotros, nosotras) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de dar. Primera persona del plural (nosotros, nosotras) del presente de indicativo de dejar o de dejarse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set dábamos and dejamos apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
dábamos
7 ch
dejamos

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. dábamos ([ˈd̪aβ̞amos]) and dejamos ([d̪eˈxamos]) 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 39855, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

dábamos is recorded at frequency rank #36,541, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈd̪aβ̞amos]. dejamos is at rank #3,314, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈxamos].

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 39855, this pair ranks #162,301 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of dábamos vs dejamos

Shared letters: admos. Private to "dábamos": . Private to "dejamos": ej.

"dábamos" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "dejamos" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • dejamosddejamos · deajmos · dejammos · dejamoss · dejamso · dejaoms · dejjamos · dejmaos

Frequency comparison

dábamos#36,541
dejamos#3,314

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "dábamos" and "dejamos" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈd̪aβ̞amos] versus [d̪eˈxamos]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "dábamos" or "dejamos"?
"dejamos" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,314 in our Spanish list, against #36,541 for "dábamos". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering dábamos vs dejamos

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “dábamos” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list