Which to use
“pésame” is a noun and “presume” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #20,484
- “pésame” frequency rank
- #11,839
- “presume” frequency rank
- 32323
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pésame | presume |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Expresión con que se manifiesta el sentimiento de pena o aflicción por el fallecimiento de una persona. El pésame se da a los familiares más cercanos del fallecido, muy en particular al cónyuge, hermanos, padres e hijos. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de presumir. |
Where the eye mixes pésame and presume
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. pésame runs 6 letters (CVCVCV) against presume's 7 (CCVCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses pésame with presume
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pésame is [ˈpesame] while presume is [pɾeˈsume]. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32323, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pésame is recorded at frequency rank #20,484, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈpesame]. presume is at rank #11,839, tagged as averb, pronounced [pɾeˈsume].
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 32323, this pair ranks #202,571 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pésame vs presume
Shared letters: emps. Private to "pésame": aé. Private to "presume": ru.
"pésame" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "presume" · 7 letters · shape CCVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- presume ← persume · ppresume · presmue · pressume · presuem · presumme · preusme · prresume
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "pésame" and "presume" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "pésame" or "presume"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "pésame" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "presume" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #202,571 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pésame" and "presume" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pesadez vs pésame". 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 #202,571 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.