Which to use
“deriva” is a noun and “derivan” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,510
- “deriva” frequency rank
- #17,105
- “derivan” frequency rank
- 23615
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | deriva | derivan |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Desvío de una embarcación con respecto al rumbo trazado debido a la corriente. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de derivar o de derivarse. |
Where the eye mixes deriva and derivan
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: deriva vs derivan
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: deriva is [d̪eˈɾiβ̞a] while derivan is [d̪eˈɾiβ̞ãn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “deriva” sits inside “derivan”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23615, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
deriva is recorded at frequency rank #6,510, classified as anoun, pronounced [d̪eˈɾiβ̞a]. derivan is at rank #17,105, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈɾiβ̞ãn].
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 23615, this pair ranks #244,952 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of deriva vs derivan
Shared letters: adeirv. Private to "deriva": -. Private to "derivan": n.
"deriva" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "derivan" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "deriva" and "derivan" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "deriva" or "derivan"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "deriva" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "derivan" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #244,952 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "deriva" and "derivan" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "derivan vs deriven". 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 #244,952 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.