Which to use
“distingue” and “distinguir” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,804
- “distingue” frequency rank
- #7,147
- “distinguir” frequency rank
- 16951
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | distingue | distinguir |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de distinguir o de distinguirse. | Percibir una cosa en medio de otras, o de circunstancias como el ruido, la oscuridad, etc. que lo dificultan, con alguno de los sentidos. |
Where the eye mixes distingue and distinguir
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. distingue runs 9 letters (CVCCVCCVV) against distinguir's 10 (CVCCVCCVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: distingue vs distinguir
A purely visual mix-up. distingue ([d̪isˈt̪ĩŋge]) and distinguir ([d̪ist̪ĩŋˈgiɾ]) 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 16951, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
distingue is recorded at frequency rank #9,804, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪isˈt̪ĩŋge]. distinguir is at rank #7,147, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪ist̪ĩŋˈgiɾ].
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 16951, this pair ranks #274,124 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of distingue vs distinguir
Shared letters: dginstu. Private to "distingue": e. Private to "distinguir": r.
"distingue" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVV · "distinguir" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- distingue ← ddistingue · disitngue · disstingue · distignue · distingeu · distinggue · distinngue · distinuge
- distinguir ← ddistinguir · disitnguir · disstinguir · distignuir · distingguir · distingiur · distinguirr · distinguri
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "distingue" and "distinguir" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "distingue" or "distinguir"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "distingue" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "distinguir" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #274,124 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "distingue" and "distinguir" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "distingue vs distinguía". 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 #274,124 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.