mamenvsmammaWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#20,420
“mamen” frequency rank
#39,852
“mamma” frequency rank
60272
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mamen mamma
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de subjuntivo de mamar o de mamarse. Mamá.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mamen and mamma apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
mamen
5 ch
mamma

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: mamen is [ˈmamẽn] while mamma is /ˈmam.ma/. 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 60272, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mamen is recorded at frequency rank #20,420, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈmamẽn]. mamma is at rank #39,852, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈmam.ma/.

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 60272, this pair ranks #59,535 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of mamen vs mamma

Shared letters: am. Private to "mamen": en. Private to "mamma": -.

"mamen" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "mamma" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • mamenammen · maemn · mamenn · mammen · mamne · mmaen · mmamen
  • mammaammma · mama · mamam · mmama · mmamma

Frequency comparison

mamen#20,420
mamma#39,852

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mamen" and "mamma" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "mamen" is a verb and "mamma" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "mamen" or "mamma"?
"mamen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #20,420 in our Spanish list, against #39,852 for "mamma". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering mamen vs mamma

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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