picovspiesWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#3,279
“pico” frequency rank
#1,492
“pies” frequency rank
4771
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature pico pies
Definition Estructura óseo-vascular que cubre la boca y nariz de las aves, adaptada a sus hábitos alimentarios. Segunda persona del singular (vos) del presente de subjuntivo de piar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set pico and pies apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
pico
4 ch
pies

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

pico and pies form a confusable pair in the Spanish index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4771, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pico is recorded at frequency rank #3,279, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈpiko]. 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 4771, this pair ranks #315,288 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

pico#3,279
pies#1,492

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pico" and "pies" be used interchangeably?
No, "pico" and "pies" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering pico vs pies

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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