Which to use
“ran” is a verb and “rayón” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #24,290
- “ran” frequency rank
- #43,812
- “rayón” frequency rank
- 68102
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ran | rayón |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pasado simple (irregular) del verbo (to) run. | Raya, sobre todo la que implica algún tipo de daño a algún objeto. |
Where the eye mixes ran and rayón
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: ran vs rayón
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ran is /ɹæn/ while rayón is [raˈʝõn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 68102, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ran is recorded at frequency rank #24,290, classified as averb, pronounced /ɹæn/. rayón is at rank #43,812, tagged as anoun, pronounced [raˈʝõn].
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 68102, this pair ranks #35,376 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of ran vs rayón
Shared letters: anr. Private to "ran": -. Private to "rayón": yó.
"ran" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "rayón" · 5 letters · shape CVVVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "ran" and "rayón" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "ran" or "rayón"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "ran" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "rayón" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #35,376 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ran" and "rayón" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "rajo vs rayón". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #35,376 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.