Which to use
“despensas” and “dispensa” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #46,488
- “despensas” frequency rank
- #45,877
- “dispensa” frequency rank
- 92365
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | despensas | dispensa |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Expensas. | Excepción al cumplimiento de una norma general que una autoridad concede graciosamente a alguien. Se una más comúnmente para referirse a las que el papa o los obispos conceden a los fieles católicos. |
Where the eye mixes despensas and dispensa
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. despensas runs 9 letters (CVCCVCCVC) against dispensa's 8 (CVCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between despensas and dispensa
A purely visual mix-up. despensas ([d̪esˈpẽnsas]) and dispensa ([d̪isˈpẽnsa]) 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 92365, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
despensas is recorded at frequency rank #46,488, classified as anoun, pronounced [d̪esˈpẽnsas]. dispensa is at rank #45,877, tagged as anoun, pronounced [d̪isˈpẽnsa].
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 92365, this pair ranks #1,538 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of despensas vs dispensa
Shared letters: adenps. Private to "despensas": -. Private to "dispensa": i.
"despensas" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "dispensa" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "despensas" and "dispensa" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "despensas" or "dispensa"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "despensas" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "dispensa" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,538 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "despensas" and "dispensa" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "dispensa vs disperso". 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 #1,538 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.