regresarvsregresesConfusable pair

Which to use

“regresar” and “regreses” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#2,420
“regresar” frequency rank
#28,915
“regreses” frequency rank
31335
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature regresar regreses
Definition Volver al punto de partida. Segunda persona del singular (tú) del presente de subjuntivo de regresar o de regresarse.

Where the eye mixes regresar and regreses

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. regresar and regreses follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

8 ch
regresar
8 ch
regreses

Why the eye confuses regresar with regreses

A purely visual mix-up. regresar ([reɣ̞ɾeˈsaɾ]) and regreses ([reˈɣ̞ɾeses]) 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 31335, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

regresar is recorded at frequency rank #2,420, classified as averb, pronounced [reɣ̞ɾeˈsaɾ]. regreses is at rank #28,915, tagged as averb, pronounced [reˈɣ̞ɾeses].

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 31335, this pair ranks #207,562 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of regresar vs regreses

Shared letters: egrs. Private to "regresar": a. Private to "regreses": -.

"regresar" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "regreses" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • regresarergresar · regersar · reggresar · regreasr · regresarr · regresra · regressar · regrresar
  • regresesergreses · regerses · reggreses · regreces · regreess · regresess · regresses · regrreses

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "regresar" for "regreses" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([reɣ̞ɾeˈsaɾ] versus [reˈɣ̞ɾeses]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "regresar" vs "regreses" - which ranks higher?
"regresar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,420 in our Spanish list, against #28,915 for "regreses". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

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 "regresar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "regreses" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #207,562 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "regresar" and "regreses" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "regreses vs reveses". 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 #207,562 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list