desdénvsdeseesWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: desdén is a noun, desees is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“desdén” is a noun and “desees” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#27,566
“desdén” frequency rank
#19,697
“desees” frequency rank
47263
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature desdén desees
Definition Frialdad u hostilidad en el trato que reflejan la poca estima que se tiene por alguien. Segunda persona del singular (tú) del presente de subjuntivo de desear.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set desdén and desees apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
desdén
6 ch
desees

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: desdén is [d̪esˈð̞ẽn] while desees is [d̪eˈsees]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47263, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

desdén is recorded at frequency rank #27,566, classified as anoun, pronounced [d̪esˈð̞ẽn]. desees is at rank #19,697, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈsees].

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 47263, this pair ranks #121,038 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of desdén vs desees

Shared letters: des. Private to "desdén": . Private to "desees": -.

"desdén" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "desees" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • deseesddesees · decees · deeses · deseess · deses · desese · dessees · dseees

Frequency comparison

desdén#27,566
desees#19,697

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "desdén" and "desees" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "desdén" is a noun and "desees" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "desdén" or "desees"?
"desees" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,697 in our Spanish list, against #27,566 for "desdén". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering desdén vs desees

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “desdén”; for a verb, it's “desees”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “desdén” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list