Which to use
“ice” is a verb and “IES” is an abbrev - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #14,863
- “ice” frequency rank
- #21,019
- “IES” frequency rank
- 35882
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ice | IES |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de izar. | Instituto de Educación Secundaria (España). |
Where the eye mixes ice and IES
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses ice with IES
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ice is [ˈise] while IES is [ˈjes]. 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 abbrev), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35882, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ice is recorded at frequency rank #14,863, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈise]. IES is at rank #21,019, tagged as anabbrev, pronounced [ˈjes].
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 35882, this pair ranks #183,663 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of ice vs IES
Shared letters: ei. Private to "ice": c. Private to "IES": s.
"ice" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "IES" · 3 letters · shape VVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ice" for "IES" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "ice" or "IES" 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 "ice" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "IES" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #183,663 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ice" and "IES" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "IES vs iza". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #183,663 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.