Which to use
“mantener” and “mantiene” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #827
- “mantener” frequency rank
- #2,084
- “mantiene” frequency rank
- 2911
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mantener | mantiene |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Proveer a alguien de sustento, en especial alimentario o económico | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de mantener. |
Where the eye mixes mantener and mantiene
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. mantener (CVCCVCVC) and mantiene (CVCCVVCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses mantener with mantiene
A purely visual mix-up. mantener ([mãn̪t̪eˈneɾ]) and mantiene ([mãn̪ˈt̪jene]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 4 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2911, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mantener is recorded at frequency rank #827, classified as averb, pronounced [mãn̪t̪eˈneɾ]. mantiene is at rank #2,084, tagged as averb, pronounced [mãn̪ˈt̪jene].
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 2911, this pair ranks #319,411 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of mantener vs mantiene
Shared letters: aemnt. Private to "mantener": r. Private to "mantiene": i.
"mantener" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC · "mantiene" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "mantener" and "mantiene" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "mantener" or "mantiene"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "mantener" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "mantiene" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #319,411 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "mantener" and "mantiene" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "manteles vs mantener". 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 #319,411 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.