Which to use
“detenido” is an adjective and “detenidos” is a participle - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,243
- “detenido” frequency rank
- #4,699
- “detenidos” frequency rank
- 7942
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | detenido | detenidos |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Que ha dejado de moverse. | Forma del plural de detenido, participio de detener o de detenerse. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set detenido and detenidos apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
detenido and detenidos form a confusable pair in the Spanish index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “detenido” sits inside “detenidos” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 7942, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
detenido is recorded at frequency rank #3,243, classified as anadj, pronounced [d̪et̪eˈnið̞o]. detenidos is at rank #4,699, tagged as aparticiple, pronounced [d̪et̪eˈnið̞os].
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 7942, this pair ranks #306,458 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "detenido" and "detenidos" be used interchangeably?
Remembering detenido vs detenidos
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “detenido”; for a participle, it's “detenidos”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “detenido” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable