Which to use
“fai” and “fui” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #40,830
- “fai” frequency rank
- #852
- “fui” frequency rank
- 41682
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fai | fui |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (el, ela, vostede) del presente de indicativo de facer. | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de ser. |
Where the eye mixes fai and fui
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. fai and fui follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: fai vs fui
A purely visual mix-up. fai ([ˈfa̠j]) and fui ([ˈfwi]) 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 a single letter - a in “fai” becomes u in “fui”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41682, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fai is recorded at frequency rank #40,830, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈfa̠j]. fui is at rank #852, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈfwi].
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 41682, this pair ranks #152,301 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of fai vs fui
Shared letters: fi. Private to "fai": a. Private to "fui": u.
"fai" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "fui" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "fai" for "fui" ever safe?
Which is more common, "fai" or "fui"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "fai" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fui" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #152,301 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fai" and "fui" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fai vs falo". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #152,301 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.