Which to use
“pass” and “pay” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #20,155
- “pass” frequency rank
- #23,167
- “pay” frequency rank
- 43322
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pass | pay |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pasar. | Pagar. |
Where the eye mixes pass and pay
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: pass vs pay
A purely visual mix-up. pass (/pɑːs/) and pay (/peɪ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43322, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pass is recorded at frequency rank #20,155, classified as averb, pronounced /pɑːs/. 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 43322, this pair ranks #143,307 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pass vs pay
Shared letters: ap. Private to "pass": s. Private to "pay": y.
"pass" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "pay" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- pass ← apss · ppass · psas
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "pass" for "pay" ever safe?
Frequency check: "pass" vs "pay" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "pass" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pay" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #143,307 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pass" and "pay" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pay vs prey". 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 #143,307 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.