Which to use
“debéis” and “debía” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #25,210
- “debéis” frequency rank
- #1,978
- “debía” frequency rank
- 27188
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | debéis | debía |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Segunda persona del plural (vosotros, vosotras) del presente de indicativo de deber. | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de deber. |
Where the eye mixes debéis and debía
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between debéis and debía
A purely visual mix-up. debéis ([d̪eˈβ̞ejs]) and debía ([d̪eˈβ̞ia]) 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 27188, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
debéis is recorded at frequency rank #25,210, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈβ̞ejs]. debía is at rank #1,978, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈβ̞ia].
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 27188, this pair ranks #228,045 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of debéis vs debía
Shared letters: bde. Private to "debéis": isé. Private to "debía": aí.
"debéis" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC · "debía" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "debéis" for "debía" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "debéis" or "debía" show up more?
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 "debéis" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "debía" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #228,045 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "debéis" and "debía" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "debéis vs debías". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #228,045 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.