Which to use
“spy” and “sur” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #48,092
- “spy” frequency rank
- #517
- “sur” frequency rank
- 48609
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | spy | sur |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Espía. | Punto cardinal del horizonte, exactamente donde se encuentra el Sol a mediodía (en el hemisferio norte), marcado a 180° con respecto al Norte en una brújula. Convencionalmente se ubica en la parte inferior de los mapas,. |
Where the eye mixes spy and sur
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between spy and sur
A purely visual mix-up. spy (/spaɪ/) and sur ([ˈsuɾ]) 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 48609, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
spy is recorded at frequency rank #48,092, classified as anoun, pronounced /spaɪ/. sur is at rank #517, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈsuɾ].
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 48609, this pair ranks #113,510 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of spy vs sur
Shared letters: s. Private to "spy": py. Private to "sur": ru.
"spy" · 3 letters · shape CCV · "sur" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "spy" and "sur" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "spy" or "sur"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "spy" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "sur" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #113,510 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "spy" and "sur" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sei vs spy". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #113,510 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.