detengavsdetengasWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#15,589
“detenga” frequency rank
#48,354
“detengas” frequency rank
63943
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature detenga detengas
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de detener o de detenerse. Segunda persona del singular (tú) del presente de subjuntivo de detener.

Where the eye mixes detenga and detengas

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. detenga runs 7 letters (CVCVCCV) against detengas's 8 (CVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
detenga
8 ch
detengas

Why the eye confuses detenga with detengas

A purely visual mix-up. detenga ([d̪eˈt̪ẽŋga]) and detengas ([d̪eˈt̪ẽŋgas]) 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 extra letter(s) - “detenga” sits inside “detengas”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63943, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

detenga is recorded at frequency rank #15,589, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈt̪ẽŋga]. detengas is at rank #48,354, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈt̪ẽŋgas].

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 63943, this pair ranks #47,090 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of detenga vs detengas

Shared letters: adegnt. Private to "detenga": -. Private to "detengas": s.

"detenga" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV  ·  "detengas" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • detenga ← ddetenga · deetnga · detegna · detenag · detengga · detennga · detnega · dettenga
  • detengas ← ddetengas · deetngas · detegnas · detenags · detengass · detenggas · detengsa · detenngas

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "detenga" and "detengas" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([d̪eˈt̪ẽŋga] versus [d̪eˈt̪ẽŋgas]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "detenga" or "detengas"?
"detenga" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,589 in our Spanish list, against #48,354 for "detengas". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "detenga" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "detengas" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #47,090 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "detenga" and "detengas" 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 #47,090 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list