subirvssuplirTell them apart

Which to use

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

#1,703
“subir” frequency rank
#24,321
“suplir” frequency rank
26024
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature subir suplir
Definition Pasar de un sitio o lugar a otro superior o elevado. Poner o proveer lo que falta; llenar, subsanar o remediar una carencia.

Where the eye mixes subir and suplir

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. subir runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against suplir's 6 (CVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

5 ch
subir
6 ch
suplir

Visual trap between subir and suplir

A purely visual mix-up. subir ([suˈβ̞iɾ]) and suplir ([suˈpliɾ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26024, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

subir is recorded at frequency rank #1,703, classified as averb, pronounced [suˈβ̞iɾ]. suplir is at rank #24,321, tagged as averb, pronounced [suˈpliɾ].

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 26024, this pair ranks #233,692 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of subir vs suplir

Shared letters: irsu. Private to "subir": b. Private to "suplir": lp.

"subir" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "suplir" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • subir ← sbuir · ssubir · subbir · subirr · subri · suibr · suvir · usbir
  • suplir ← spulir · ssuplir · sulpir · supilr · suplirr · supllir · suplri · supplir

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "subir" and "suplir" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([suˈβ̞iɾ] versus [suˈpliɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "subir" vs "suplir" - which ranks higher?
"subir" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,703 in our Spanish list, against #24,321 for "suplir". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

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 "subir" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "suplir" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #233,692 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "subir" and "suplir" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "suplir vs surtir". 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 #233,692 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