Which to use
“system” and “systems” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #14,970
- “system” frequency rank
- #25,466
- “systems” frequency rank
- 40436
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | system | systems |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Sistema. | Forma del plural de system. |
Where the eye mixes system and systems
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses system with systems
A purely visual mix-up. system (/ˈsɪs.təm/) and systems (/ˈsɪs.təmz/) 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 extra letter(s) - “system” sits inside “systems”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40436, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
system is recorded at frequency rank #14,970, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈsɪs.təm/. systems is at rank #25,466, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈsɪs.təmz/.
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 40436, this pair ranks #159,090 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of system vs systems
Shared letters: emsty. Private to "system": -. Private to "systems": -.
"system" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "systems" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "system" and "systems" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "system" vs "systems" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "system" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "systems" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #159,090 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "system" and "systems" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "stem vs system". 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 #159,090 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.