Which to use
“debimos” and “decimos” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #37,013
- “debimos” frequency rank
- #4,149
- “decimos” frequency rank
- 41162
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | debimos | decimos |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del plural (nosotros, nosotras) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de deber. | Primera persona del plural (nosotros, nosotras) del presente de indicativo de decir. |
Where the eye mixes debimos and decimos
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: debimos vs decimos
A purely visual mix-up. debimos ([d̪eˈβ̞imos]) and decimos ([d̪eˈsimos]) 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 a single letter - b in “debimos” becomes c in “decimos”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41162, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
debimos is recorded at frequency rank #37,013, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈβ̞imos]. decimos is at rank #4,149, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈsimos].
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 41162, this pair ranks #155,184 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of debimos vs decimos
Shared letters: deimos. Private to "debimos": b. Private to "decimos": c.
"debimos" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "decimos" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "debimos" and "decimos" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "debimos" or "decimos"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "debimos" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "decimos" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #155,184 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "debimos" and "decimos" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "debías vs debimos". 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 #155,184 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.