escribanvsescribísWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“escriban” and “escribís” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#18,244
“escriban” frequency rank
#40,814
“escribís” frequency rank
59058
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature escriban escribís
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de subjuntivo de escribir o de escribirse. Segunda persona del singular (vos) del presente de indicativo de escribir o de escribirse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set escriban and escribís apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
escriban
8 ch
escribís

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. escriban ([esˈkɾiβ̞ãn]) and escribís ([eskɾiˈβ̞is]) 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 59058, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

escriban is recorded at frequency rank #18,244, classified as averb, pronounced [esˈkɾiβ̞ãn]. escribís is at rank #40,814, tagged as averb, pronounced [eskɾiˈβ̞is].

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 59058, this pair ranks #64,048 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of escriban vs escribís

Shared letters: bceirs. Private to "escriban": an. Private to "escribís": í.

"escriban" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCVC  ·  "escribís" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • escribanecsriban · esccriban · escirban · escrbian · escriabn · escribann · escribban · escribna

Frequency comparison

escriban#18,244
escribís#40,814

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "escriban" and "escribís" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([esˈkɾiβ̞ãn] versus [eskɾiˈβ̞is]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "escriban" or "escribís"?
"escriban" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #18,244 in our Spanish list, against #40,814 for "escribís". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering escriban vs escribís

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “escriban” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list