Which to use
“espiar” is a verb and “espina” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #17,692
- “espiar” frequency rank
- #12,377
- “espina” frequency rank
- 30069
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | espiar | espina |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Observar disimuladamente y en secreto lo que alguien hace. | Parte de una hoja, rama o tallo vegetal que se desarrolla alargada con terminación en punta. |
Where the eye mixes espiar and espina
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses espiar with espina
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: espiar is [esˈpjaɾ] while espina is [esˈpina]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30069, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
espiar is recorded at frequency rank #17,692, classified as averb, pronounced [esˈpjaɾ]. espina is at rank #12,377, tagged as anoun, pronounced [esˈpina].
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 30069, this pair ranks #213,828 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of espiar vs espina
Shared letters: aeips. Private to "espiar": r. Private to "espina": n.
"espiar" · 6 letters · shape VCCVVC · "espina" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "espiar" for "espina" ever safe?
Which is more common, "espiar" or "espina"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "espiar" and "espina" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "espiar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "espina" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #213,828 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "espiar" and "espina" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "espina vs expira". 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 #213,828 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.