quedenvsquiénWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: queden is a verb, quién is a pronoun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“queden” is a verb and “quién” is a pronoun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#6,582
“queden” frequency rank
#355
“quién” frequency rank
6937
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature queden quién
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de subjuntivo de quedar o de quedarse. Qué persona.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set queden and quién apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
queden
5 ch
quién

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

queden and quién form a confusable pair in the Spanish index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 6937, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

queden is recorded at frequency rank #6,582, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkeð̞ẽn]. quién is at rank #355, tagged as apron, pronounced [ˈkjẽn].

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 6937, this pair ranks #309,406 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

queden#6,582
quién#355

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "queden" and "quién" be used interchangeably?
No, "queden" and "quién" 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 queden vs quién

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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