Which to use
“recién” is an adverb and “reciente” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,423
- “recién” frequency rank
- #2,419
- “reciente” frequency rank
- 3842
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | recién | reciente |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Recientemente | Que acaba de suceder o acontecer. |
Where the eye mixes recién and reciente
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. recién runs 6 letters (CVCVVC) against reciente's 8 (CVCVVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: recién vs reciente
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: recién is [reˈsjẽn] while reciente is [reˈsjẽn̪t̪e]. 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 (adverb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 3842, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
recién is recorded at frequency rank #1,423, classified as anadv, pronounced [reˈsjẽn]. reciente is at rank #2,419, tagged as anadj, pronounced [reˈsjẽn̪t̪e].
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 3842, this pair ranks #317,434 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of recién vs reciente
Shared letters: ceinr. Private to "recién": é. Private to "reciente": t.
"recién" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC · "reciente" · 8 letters · shape CVCVVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- reciente ← erciente · rceiente · recciente · receinte · recienet · reciennte · recientte · recietne
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "recién" and "reciente" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "recién" vs "reciente" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "recién" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "reciente" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #317,434 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "recién" and "reciente" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "reciente vs revierte". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #317,434 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.