Which to use
“según” is a preposition and “sein” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #196
- “según” frequency rank
- #45,601
- “sein” frequency rank
- 45797
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | según | sein |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Conforme con, con arreglo a. | Ser, estar. |
Where the eye mixes según and sein
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. según runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against sein's 4 (CVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: según vs sein
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: según is [seˈɣ̞ũn] while sein is [ˈzaɪ̯n]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (preposition vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45797, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
según is recorded at frequency rank #196, classified as aprep, pronounced [seˈɣ̞ũn]. sein is at rank #45,601, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈzaɪ̯n].
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 45797, this pair ranks #129,403 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of según vs sein
Shared letters: ens. Private to "según": gú. Private to "sein": i.
"según" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "sein" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- sein ← esin · seinn · seni · ssein
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "según" for "sein" ever safe?
Frequency check: "según" vs "sein" - 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 "según" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "sein" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #129,403 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "según" and "sein" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sei vs sein". 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 #129,403 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.