dabanvsdebaConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#5,298
“daban” frequency rank
#5,944
“deba” frequency rank
11242
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature daban deba
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de dar. Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de deber.

Where the eye mixes daban and deba

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.

5 ch
daban
4 ch
deba

Why the eye confuses daban with deba

A purely visual mix-up. daban ([ˈd̪aβ̞ãn]) and deba ([ˈd̪eβ̞a]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11242, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

daban is recorded at frequency rank #5,298, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈd̪aβ̞ãn]. deba is at rank #5,944, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈd̪eβ̞a].

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 11242, this pair ranks #295,798 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of daban vs deba

Shared letters: abd. Private to "daban": n. Private to "deba": e.

"daban" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "deba" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • dabanadban · daabn · dabann · dabban · dabna · davan · dbaan · ddaban
  • debadbea · ddeba · deab · debba · edba

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "daban" and "deba" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈd̪aβ̞ãn] versus [ˈd̪eβ̞a]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "daban" or "deba"?
"daban" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,298 in our Spanish list, against #5,944 for "deba". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "daban" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "deba" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #295,798 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "daban" and "deba" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "deba vs Deva". Nearby pair
  • Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes

Confusion rank #295,798 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list