sumabavssumanWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#38,406
“sumaba” frequency rank
#7,791
“suman” frequency rank
46197
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sumaba suman
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de sumar. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de sumar.

Where the eye mixes sumaba and suman

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
sumaba
5 ch
suman

Visual trap between sumaba and suman

A purely visual mix-up. sumaba ([suˈmaβ̞a]) and suman ([ˈsumãn]) 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 46197, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sumaba is recorded at frequency rank #38,406, classified as averb, pronounced [suˈmaβ̞a]. suman is at rank #7,791, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈsumãn].

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 46197, this pair ranks #127,121 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of sumaba vs suman

Shared letters: amsu. Private to "sumaba": b. Private to "suman": n.

"sumaba" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "suman" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • sumabasmuaba · ssumaba · suamba · sumaab · sumabba · sumava · sumbaa · summaba
  • sumansmuan · ssuman · suamn · sumann · summan · sumna · usman

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "sumaba" and "suman" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([suˈmaβ̞a] versus [ˈsumãn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "sumaba" vs "suman" - which ranks higher?
"suman" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,791 in our Spanish list, against #38,406 for "sumaba". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "sumaba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "suman" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #127,121 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "sumaba" and "suman" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sumaba vs sumada". 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 #127,121 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