deseavsdesvelaWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#2,653
“desea” frequency rank
#31,314
“desvela” frequency rank
33967
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature desea desvela
Definition Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de desear. Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de desvelar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set desea and desvela apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
desea
7 ch
desvela

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. desea ([d̪eˈsea]) and desvela ([d̪esˈβ̞ela]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33967, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

desea is recorded at frequency rank #2,653, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈsea]. desvela is at rank #31,314, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪esˈβ̞ela].

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 33967, this pair ranks #193,922 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of desea vs desvela

Shared letters: ades. Private to "desea": -. Private to "desvela": lv.

"desea" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV  ·  "desvela" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • deseaddesea · decea · deesa · desae · dessea · dseea · edsea
  • desveladdesvela · desbela · desevla · dessvela · desveal · desvella · desvlea · desvvela

Frequency comparison

desea#2,653
desvela#31,314

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "desea" and "desvela" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([d̪eˈsea] versus [d̪esˈβ̞ela]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "desea" or "desvela"?
"desea" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,653 in our Spanish list, against #31,314 for "desvela". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering desea vs desvela

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 “desea” 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