Which to use
“dijo” and “dio” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #184
- “dijo” frequency rank
- #481
- “dio” frequency rank
- 665
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | dijo | dio |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de decir. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de dar o de darse. |
Where the eye mixes dijo and dio
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between dijo and dio
A purely visual mix-up. dijo ([ˈd̪ixo]) and dio ([ˈd̪jo]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 665, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
dijo is recorded at frequency rank #184, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈd̪ixo]. dio is at rank #481, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈd̪jo].
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 665, this pair ranks #323,121 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of dijo vs dio
Shared letters: dio. Private to "dijo": j. Private to "dio": -.
"dijo" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "dio" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- dijo ← ddijo · dijjo · dioj · djio · idjo
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "dijo" for "dio" ever safe?
Which is more common, "dijo" or "dio"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "dijo" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "dio" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #323,121 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "dijo" and "dio" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "dio vs divo". 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 #323,121 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.