defendívsdefendíanWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#41,842
“defendí” frequency rank
#24,461
“defendían” frequency rank
66303
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature defendí defendían
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de defender o de defenderse. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de defender o de defenderse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set defendí and defendían apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
defendí
9 ch
defendían

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. defendí ([d̪efẽn̪ˈd̪i]) and defendían ([d̪efẽn̪ˈd̪iãn]) 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 extra letter(s) - “defendí” sits inside “defendían”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 66303, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

defendí is recorded at frequency rank #41,842, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪efẽn̪ˈd̪i]. defendían is at rank #24,461, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪efẽn̪ˈd̪iãn].

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 66303, this pair ranks #40,228 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of defendí vs defendían

Shared letters: defní. Private to "defendí": -. Private to "defendían": a.

"defendí" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV  ·  "defendían" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVVC

Frequency comparison

defendí#41,842
defendían#24,461

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "defendí" and "defendían" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([d̪efẽn̪ˈd̪i] versus [d̪efẽn̪ˈd̪iãn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "defendí" or "defendían"?
"defendían" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #24,461 in our Spanish list, against #41,842 for "defendí". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering defendí vs defendían

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 “defendí” 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