dejevsdeliWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: deje is a noun, deli is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“deje” is a noun and “deli” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#1,765
“deje” frequency rank
#49,566
“deli” frequency rank
51331
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature deje deli
Definition Parte del habla de una lengua que tiende hacia la manera local de hablarla en un lugar. Delicioso.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set deje and deli apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
deje
4 ch
deli

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: deje is [ˈd̪exe] while deli is [ˈd̪eli]. 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 adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51331, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

deje is recorded at frequency rank #1,765, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈd̪exe]. deli is at rank #49,566, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈd̪eli].

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 51331, this pair ranks #98,431 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of deje vs deli

Shared letters: de. Private to "deje": j. Private to "deli": il.

"deje" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "deli" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • dejeddeje · deej · dejje · djee · edje
  • deliddeli · delli · dlei

Frequency comparison

deje#1,765
deli#49,566

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "deje" and "deli" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "deje" is a noun and "deli" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "deje" or "deli"?
"deje" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,765 in our Spanish list, against #49,566 for "deli". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering deje vs deli

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “deje”; for an adjective, it's “deli”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “deje” 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