Which to use
“defense” is a noun and “depende” is a phrase - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #34,976
- “defense” frequency rank
- #1,633
- “depende” frequency rank
- 36609
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | defense | depende |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Defensa. | Expresión para indicar que algo es contingente o se acepta solo bajo determinadas condiciones.. |
Where the eye mixes defense and depende
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between defense and depende
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: defense is /dɪˈfɛns/ while depende is [d̪eˈpẽn̪d̪e]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs phrase), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36609, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
defense is recorded at frequency rank #34,976, classified as anoun, pronounced /dɪˈfɛns/. depende is at rank #1,633, tagged as aphrase, pronounced [d̪eˈpẽn̪d̪e].
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 36609, this pair ranks #179,738 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of defense vs depende
Shared letters: den. Private to "defense": fs. Private to "depende": p.
"defense" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV · "depende" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "defense" and "depende" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "defense" or "depende"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "defense" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "depende" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #179,738 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "defense" and "depende" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "defense vs déjense". 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 #179,738 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.