peinesvspiesWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#49,852
“peines” frequency rank
#1,492
“pies” frequency rank
51344
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature peines pies
Definition Forma del plural de peine. Segunda persona del singular (vos) del presente de subjuntivo de piar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set peines and pies apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
peines
4 ch
pies

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: peines is [ˈpejnes] while pies is [ˈpjes]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51344, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

peines is recorded at frequency rank #49,852, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈpejnes]. pies is at rank #1,492, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈpjes].

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 51344, this pair ranks #98,358 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of peines vs pies

Shared letters: eips. Private to "peines": n. Private to "pies": -.

"peines" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "pies" · 4 letters · shape CVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • peinesepines · peiens · peiness · peinnes · penies · ppeines
  • piesipes · peis · piess · pise · ppies

Frequency comparison

peines#49,852
pies#1,492

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "peines" and "pies" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "peines" is a noun and "pies" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "peines" or "pies"?
"pies" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,492 in our Spanish list, against #49,852 for "peines". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering peines vs pies

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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