Which to use
“espiar” is a verb and “espinas” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #17,692
- “espiar” frequency rank
- #11,403
- “espinas” frequency rank
- 29095
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | espiar | espinas |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Observar disimuladamente y en secreto lo que alguien hace. | Forma del plural de espina₁. |
Where the eye mixes espiar and espinas
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between espiar and espinas
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: espiar is [esˈpjaɾ] while espinas is [esˈpinas]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 29095, 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]. espinas is at rank #11,403, tagged as anoun, pronounced [esˈpinas].
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 29095, this pair ranks #218,715 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of espiar vs espinas
Shared letters: aeips. Private to "espiar": r. Private to "espinas": n.
"espiar" · 6 letters · shape VCCVVC · "espinas" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "espiar" and "espinas" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "espiar" or "espinas" show up more?
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 "espiar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "espinas" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #218,715 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "espiar" and "espinas" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "espinaca vs espinas". 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 #218,715 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.