Which to use
“pensé” is a verb and “persa” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,522
- “pensé” frequency rank
- #11,469
- “persa” frequency rank
- 12991
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pensé | persa |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de pensar. | Lengua indoeuropea de la rama indoirania, hablada en Irán y las áreas colindantes de Asia. |
Where the eye mixes pensé and persa
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between pensé and persa
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pensé is [pẽnˈse] while persa is [ˈpeɾsa]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12991, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pensé is recorded at frequency rank #1,522, classified as averb, pronounced [pẽnˈse]. persa is at rank #11,469, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈpeɾsa].
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 12991, this pair ranks #289,541 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of pensé vs persa
Shared letters: eps. Private to "pensé": né. Private to "persa": ar.
"pensé" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "persa" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- persa ← eprsa · perrsa · perssa · ppersa
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "pensé" for "persa" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "pensé" or "persa" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "pensé" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "persa" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #289,541 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pensé" and "persa" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "parca vs persa". 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 #289,541 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.