Which to use
“detengo” is a verb and “detenido” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #40,767
- “detengo” frequency rank
- #3,243
- “detenido” frequency rank
- 44010
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | detengo | detenido |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de indicativo de detener. | Que ha dejado de moverse. |
Where the eye mixes detengo and detenido
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. detengo runs 7 letters (CVCVCCV) against detenido's 8 (CVCVCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between detengo and detenido
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: detengo is [d̪eˈt̪ẽŋgo] while detenido is [d̪et̪eˈnið̞o]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44010, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
detengo is recorded at frequency rank #40,767, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈt̪ẽŋgo]. detenido is at rank #3,243, tagged as anadj, pronounced [d̪et̪eˈnið̞o].
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 44010, this pair ranks #139,421 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of detengo vs detenido
Shared letters: denot. Private to "detengo": g. Private to "detenido": i.
"detengo" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV · "detenido" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "detengo" for "detenido" ever safe?
Frequency check: "detengo" vs "detenido" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "detengo" and "detenido" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "detengo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "detenido" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #139,421 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "detengo" and "detenido" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "detengas vs detengo". 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 #139,421 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.