Which to use
“detecta” and “detenía” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #16,816
- “detecta” frequency rank
- #42,955
- “detenía” frequency rank
- 59771
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | detecta | detenía |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de detectar. | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de detener o de detenerse. |
Where the eye mixes detecta and detenía
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. detecta (CVCVCCV) and detenía (CVCVCVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses detecta with detenía
A purely visual mix-up. detecta ([d̪eˈt̪ekt̪a]) and detenía ([d̪et̪eˈnia]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 59771, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
detecta is recorded at frequency rank #16,816, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈt̪ekt̪a]. detenía is at rank #42,955, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪et̪eˈnia].
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 59771, this pair ranks #61,395 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of detecta vs detenía
Shared letters: adet. Private to "detecta": c. Private to "detenía": ní.
"detecta" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV · "detenía" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- detecta ← ddetecta · deetcta · detceta · detecat · deteccta · detectta · detetca · dettecta
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "detecta" for "detenía" ever safe?
Frequency check: "detecta" vs "detenía" - which ranks higher?
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 "detecta" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "detenía" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #61,395 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "detecta" and "detenía" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "detengas vs detenía". 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 #61,395 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.