regresevsrepresaWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#10,208
“regrese” frequency rank
#21,137
“represa” frequency rank
31345
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature regrese represa
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de regresar o de regresarse. Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de represar.

Where the eye mixes regrese and represa

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. regrese and represa follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVCV). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

7 ch
regrese
7 ch
represa

Why the eye confuses regrese with represa

A purely visual mix-up. regrese ([reˈɣ̞ɾese]) and represa ([reˈpɾesa]) 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 31345, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

regrese is recorded at frequency rank #10,208, classified as averb, pronounced [reˈɣ̞ɾese]. represa is at rank #21,137, tagged as averb, pronounced [reˈpɾesa].

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 31345, this pair ranks #207,506 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of regrese vs represa

Shared letters: ers. Private to "regrese": g. Private to "represa": ap.

"regrese" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV  ·  "represa" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • regrese ← ergrese · regerse · reggrese · regrece · regrees · regresse · regrrese · regrsee
  • represa ← erpresa · repersa · reppresa · repreas · repressa · reprresa · reprsea · rerpesa

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "regrese" and "represa" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([reˈɣ̞ɾese] versus [reˈpɾesa]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "regrese" vs "represa" - which ranks higher?
"regrese" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,208 in our Spanish list, against #21,137 for "represa". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "regrese" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "represa" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #207,506 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "regrese" and "represa" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "represa vs repulsa". 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 #207,506 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