Which to use
“ran” and “roe” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #24,290
- “ran” frequency rank
- #39,442
- “roe” frequency rank
- 63732
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ran | roe |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pasado simple (irregular) del verbo (to) run. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de roer. |
Where the eye mixes ran and roe
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Look-alike desk: ran vs roe
A purely visual mix-up. ran (/ɹæn/) and roe ([ˈroe]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63732, 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/. roe is at rank #39,442, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈroe].
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 63732, this pair ranks #47,811 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of ran vs roe
Shared letters: r. Private to "ran": an. Private to "roe": eo.
"ran" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "roe" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ran" for "roe" ever safe?
Which is more common, "ran" or "roe"?
After this comparison
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 "roe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #47,811 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ran" and "roe" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "roe vs rum". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #47,811 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.