kovskunWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: ko is a pronoun, kun is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“ko” is a pronoun and “kun” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#15,405
“ko” frequency rank
#17,465
“kun” frequency rank
32870
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ko kun
Definition Este, esta. Pronombre y adjetivo demostrativo usado para una entidad presente. Aceite de animal.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set ko and kun apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

2 ch
ko
3 ch
kun

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

ko and kun form a confusable pair in the Spanish index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32870, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ko is recorded at frequency rank #15,405, classified as apron, pronounced /ˈko/. kun is at rank #17,465, tagged as anoun, pronounced [kun].

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 32870, this pair ranks #199,775 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Frequency comparison

ko#15,405
kun#17,465

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ko" and "kun" be used interchangeably?
No, "ko" and "kun" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering ko vs kun

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a pronoun, it's “ko”; for a noun, it's “kun”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “ko” 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