piquevspsiqueWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“pique” and “psique” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#17,238
“pique” frequency rank
#31,073
“psique” frequency rank
48311
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature pique psique
Definition Resentimiento, desazón o disgusto ocasionado de una disputa u otra cosa semejante. Hipotético principio espiritual del ser humano, complementario y distinto del cuerpo

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
pique
6 ch
psique

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. pique ([ˈpike]) and psique ([ˈsike]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48311, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pique is recorded at frequency rank #17,238, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈpike]. psique is at rank #31,073, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈsike].

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 48311, this pair ranks #115,195 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of pique vs psique

Shared letters: eipqu. Private to "pique": -. Private to "psique": s.

"pique" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV  ·  "psique" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • piqueipque · piqeu · piqque · piuqe · ppique · pqiue
  • psiquepcique · pisque · ppsique · psiqeu · psiqque · psiuqe · psqiue · pssique

Frequency comparison

pique#17,238
psique#31,073

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pique" and "psique" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈpike] versus [ˈsike]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "pique" or "psique"?
"pique" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,238 in our Spanish list, against #31,073 for "psique". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering pique vs psique

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “pique” 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