quivsquickWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: qui is a pronoun, quick is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“qui” is a pronoun and “quick” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#12,907
“qui” frequency rank
#33,802
“quick” frequency rank
46709
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature qui quick
Definition Quién. Rápido, veloz.

Where the spellings diverge

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

3 ch
qui
5 ch
quick

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

qui and quick 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 2 extra letter(s) - “qui” sits inside “quick” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46709, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

qui is recorded at frequency rank #12,907, classified as apron, pronounced [ˈki]. quick is at rank #33,802, tagged as anadj, pronounced /kwɪk/.

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 46709, this pair ranks #124,221 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Frequency comparison

qui#12,907
quick#33,802

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "qui" and "quick" be used interchangeably?
No, "qui" and "quick" 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 qui vs quick

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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