pequeñavspequesWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: pequeña is a adjective, peques is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“pequeña” is an adjective and “peques” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#831
“pequeña” frequency rank
#30,186
“peques” frequency rank
31017
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature pequeña peques
Definition Forma del femenino singular de pequeño. Segunda persona del singular (tú) del presente de subjuntivo de pecar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set pequeña and peques apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
pequeña
6 ch
peques

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pequeña is [peˈkeɲa] while peques is [ˈpekes]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31017, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pequeña is recorded at frequency rank #831, classified as anadj, pronounced [peˈkeɲa]. peques is at rank #30,186, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈpekes].

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 31017, this pair ranks #209,219 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of pequeña vs peques

Shared letters: epqu. Private to "pequeña": . Private to "peques": s.

"pequeña" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCV  ·  "peques" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • pequesepques · peqeus · peqques · pequess · pequse · peuqes · ppeques · pqeues

Frequency comparison

pequeña#831
peques#30,186

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pequeña" and "peques" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "pequeña" is an adjective and "peques" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "pequeña" or "peques"?
"pequeña" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #831 in our Spanish list, against #30,186 for "peques". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering pequeña vs peques

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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