decentesvsdementesConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#17,660
“decentes” frequency rank
#35,978
“dementes” frequency rank
53638
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature decentes dementes
Definition Forma del plural de decente. Forma del plural de demente.

Where the eye mixes decentes and dementes

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. decentes and dementes follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

8 ch
decentes
8 ch
dementes

Look-alike desk: decentes vs dementes

A purely visual mix-up. decentes ([d̪eˈsẽn̪t̪es]) and dementes ([d̪eˈmẽn̪t̪es]) 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 - c in “decentes” becomes m in “dementes”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53638, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

decentes is recorded at frequency rank #17,660, classified as anadj, pronounced [d̪eˈsẽn̪t̪es]. dementes is at rank #35,978, tagged as anadj, pronounced [d̪eˈmẽn̪t̪es].

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 53638, this pair ranks #86,923 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of decentes vs dementes

Shared letters: denst. Private to "decentes": c. Private to "dementes": m.

"decentes" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC  ·  "dementes" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • decentesdceentes · ddecentes · deccentes · decenets · decenntes · decentess · decentse · decenttes
  • dementesddementes · deemntes · demenets · demenntes · dementess · dementse · dementtes · demetnes

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "decentes" and "dementes" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([d̪eˈsẽn̪t̪es] versus [d̪eˈmẽn̪t̪es]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "decentes" or "dementes"?
"decentes" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,660 in our Spanish list, against #35,978 for "dementes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "decentes" and "dementes" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "decentes" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "dementes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #86,923 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "decentes" and "dementes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "dementes vs detente". 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 #86,923 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