istvsitaWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: ist is a verb, ita is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“ist” is a verb and “ita” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#41,994
“ist” frequency rank
#38,192
“ita” frequency rank
80186
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ist ita
Definition Tercera persona del singular (er, sie, es) del presente de indicativo de sein. Piedra, así

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set ist and ita apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
ist
3 ch
ita

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ist is /ɪst/ while ita is [iˈta]. 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 80186, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ist is recorded at frequency rank #41,994, classified as averb, pronounced /ɪst/. ita is at rank #38,192, tagged as anoun, pronounced [iˈta].

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 80186, this pair ranks #12,012 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of ist vs ita

Shared letters: it. Private to "ist": s. Private to "ita": a.

"ist" · 3 letters · shape VCC  ·  "ita" · 3 letters · shape VCV

Frequency comparison

ist#41,994
ita#38,192

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ist" and "ita" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "ist" is a verb and "ita" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "ist" or "ita"?
"ita" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #38,192 in our Spanish list, against #41,994 for "ist". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering ist vs ita

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “ist”; for a noun, it's “ita”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “ist” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list