Which to use
“desempeñado” is a verb and “desempeño” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #16,073
- “desempeñado” frequency rank
- #4,594
- “desempeño” frequency rank
- 20667
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | desempeñado | desempeño |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Participio de desempeñar. | Acción o efecto de desempeñar o desempeñarse. |
Where the eye mixes desempeñado and desempeño
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. desempeñado runs 11 letters (CVCVCCVCVCV) against desempeño's 9 (CVCVCCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: desempeñado vs desempeño
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: desempeñado is [d̪esẽmpeˈɲað̞o] while desempeño is [d̪esẽmˈpeɲo]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20667, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
desempeñado is recorded at frequency rank #16,073, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪esẽmpeˈɲað̞o]. desempeño is at rank #4,594, tagged as anoun, pronounced [d̪esẽmˈpeɲo].
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 20667, this pair ranks #258,341 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of desempeñado vs desempeño
Shared letters: demopsñ. Private to "desempeñado": a. Private to "desempeño": -.
"desempeñado" · 11 letters · shape CVCVCCVCVCV · "desempeño" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "desempeñado" and "desempeño" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "desempeñado" or "desempeño"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "desempeñado" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "desempeño" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #258,341 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "desempeñado" and "desempeño" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "desempeñado vs desempeñaron". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #258,341 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.