Which to use
“detengo” and “detente” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #40,767
- “detengo” frequency rank
- #47,728
- “detente” frequency rank
- 88495
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | detengo | detente |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de indicativo de detener. | Segunda persona del singular (tú) del imperativo afirmativo de detenerse (con el pronombre «te» enclítico). |
Where the eye mixes detengo and detente
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. detengo and detente follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses detengo with detente
A purely visual mix-up. detengo ([d̪eˈt̪ẽŋgo]) and detente ([d̪eˈt̪ẽn̪t̪e]) 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 88495, 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]. detente is at rank #47,728, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈt̪ẽn̪t̪e].
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 88495, this pair ranks #3,748 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of detengo vs detente
Shared letters: dent. Private to "detengo": go. Private to "detente": -.
"detengo" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV · "detente" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "detengo" and "detente" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "detengo" or "detente"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "detengo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "detente" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #3,748 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "detengo" and "detente" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "déjense vs detente". 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 #3,748 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.