stavssueWhich spelling fits?

Quick tell: sta is a adjective, sue is a pronoun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“sta” is an adjective and “sue” is a pronoun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#14,015
“sta” frequency rank
#18,397
“sue” frequency rank
32412
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sta sue
Definition Forma del femenino de sto: «esta». Yo, este servidor, su servidor.

Where the eye mixes sta and sue

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.

3 ch
sta
3 ch
sue

Look-alike desk: sta vs sue

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: sta is /ˈsta/ while sue is [ˈswe]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs pronoun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32412, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sta is recorded at frequency rank #14,015, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈsta/. sue is at rank #18,397, tagged as apron, pronounced [ˈswe].

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 32412, this pair ranks #202,097 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of sta vs sue

Shared letters: s. Private to "sta": at. Private to "sue": eu.

"sta" · 3 letters · shape CCV  ·  "sue" · 3 letters · shape CVV

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "sta" for "sue" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "sta" is an adjective and "sue" a pronoun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "sta" or "sue"?
"sta" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #14,015 in our Spanish list, against #18,397 for "sue". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "sta" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "sue" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #202,097 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "sta" and "sue" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "stem vs sue". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #202,097 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