dañenvsdenWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#47,695
“dañen” frequency rank
#2,020
“den” frequency rank
49715
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature dañen den
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de subjuntivo de dañar. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de subjuntivo de dar o de darse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set dañen and den apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
dañen
3 ch
den

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. dañen ([ˈd̪aɲẽn]) and den ([ˈd̪ẽn]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49715, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

dañen is recorded at frequency rank #47,695, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈd̪aɲẽn]. den is at rank #2,020, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈd̪ẽn].

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 49715, this pair ranks #107,236 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of dañen vs den

Shared letters: den. Private to "dañen": . Private to "den": -.

"dañen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "den" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequency comparison

dañen#47,695
den#2,020

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "dañen" and "den" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈd̪aɲẽn] versus [ˈd̪ẽn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "dañen" or "den"?
"den" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,020 in our Spanish list, against #47,695 for "dañen". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering dañen vs den

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 “dañen” 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