Which to use
“despedí” and “despidió” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #39,159
- “despedí” frequency rank
- #13,226
- “despidió” frequency rank
- 52385
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | despedí | despidió |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de despedir. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de despedir o de despedirse. |
Where the eye mixes despedí and despidió
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. despedí runs 7 letters (CVCCVCV) against despidió's 8 (CVCCVCVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses despedí with despidió
A purely visual mix-up. despedí ([d̪espeˈð̞i]) and despidió ([d̪espiˈð̞jo]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52385, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
despedí is recorded at frequency rank #39,159, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪espeˈð̞i]. despidió is at rank #13,226, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪espiˈð̞jo].
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 52385, this pair ranks #92,970 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of despedí vs despidió
Shared letters: deps. Private to "despedí": í. Private to "despidió": ió.
"despedí" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV · "despidió" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "despedí" and "despidió" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "despedí" or "despidió" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "despedí" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "despidió" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #92,970 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "despedí" and "despidió" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "despedí vs despeja". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #92,970 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.