peivsponTell them apart

Which to use

“pei” and “pon” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#45,496
“pei” frequency rank
#6,941
“pon” frequency rank
52437
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature pei pon
Definition Decimoséptima letra del alfabeto hebreo Se emplea solo en la locución pedir pon..

Where the eye mixes pei and pon

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.

3 ch
pei
3 ch
pon

Why the eye confuses pei with pon

A purely visual mix-up. pei ([ˈpej]) and pon ([ˈpõn]) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52437, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pei is recorded at frequency rank #45,496, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈpej]. pon is at rank #6,941, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈpõn].

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 52437, this pair ranks #92,693 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of pei vs pon

Shared letters: p. Private to "pei": ei. Private to "pon": no.

"pei" · 3 letters · shape CVV  ·  "pon" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pei" and "pon" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈpej] versus [ˈpõn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary Spanish text, does "pei" or "pon" show up more?
"pon" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,941 in our Spanish list, against #45,496 for "pei". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "pei" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "pon" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #92,693 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "pei" and "pon" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pei vs prey". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #92,693 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list