pasevspayWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#1,147
“pase” frequency rank
#23,167
“pay” frequency rank
24314
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature pase pay
Definition Acción o efecto de pasar (en sus diferentes acepciones). Pagar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set pase and pay apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
pase
3 ch
pay

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

pase and pay 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 24314, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pase is recorded at frequency rank #1,147, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈpase]. pay is at rank #23,167, tagged as averb, pronounced /peɪ/.

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 24314, this pair ranks #241,728 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Frequency comparison

pase#1,147
pay#23,167

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pase" and "pay" be used interchangeably?
No, "pase" and "pay" 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 pase vs pay

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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