Which to use
“lei” is a noun and “lies” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #9,485
- “lei” frequency rank
- #48,504
- “lies” frequency rank
- 57989
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lei | lies |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Corona de flores que adorna el cuello y que se obsequia al llegar o marchar como símbolo de afecto. | Segunda persona del singular (vos) del presente de subjuntivo de liar o de liarse. |
Where the eye mixes lei and lies
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between lei and lies
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: lei is [ˈlej] while lies is [ˈljes]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 57989, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lei is recorded at frequency rank #9,485, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈlej]. lies is at rank #48,504, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈljes].
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 57989, this pair ranks #68,221 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of lei vs lies
Shared letters: eil. Private to "lei": -. Private to "lies": s.
"lei" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "lies" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- lies ← iles · leis · liess · lise · llies
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "lei" for "lies" ever safe?
Frequency check: "lei" vs "lies" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "lei" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lies" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #68,221 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lei" and "lies" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lens vs lies". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #68,221 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.