Which to use
“kan” is a noun and “Kei” is a name - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #28,425
- “kan” frequency rank
- #29,712
- “Kei” frequency rank
- 58137
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | kan | Kei |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Título que los tártaros daban a su príncipe o jefe. | Hipocorístico de Keila. |
Where the eye mixes kan and Kei
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence. kan (CVC) and Kei (CVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: kan vs Kei
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: kan is [ˈkãn] while Kei is [ˈkej]. 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 (noun vs name), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 58137, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
kan is recorded at frequency rank #28,425, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkãn]. Kei is at rank #29,712, tagged as aname, pronounced [ˈkej].
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 58137, this pair ranks #67,630 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of kan vs Kei
Shared letters: k. Private to "kan": an. Private to "Kei": ei.
"kan" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "Kei" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "kan" for "Kei" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "kan" or "Kei" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "kan" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Kei" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #67,630 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "kan" and "Kei" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "kan vs Kano". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #67,630 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.