Which to use
“tem” and “TOC” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #46,838
- “tem” frequency rank
- #17,835
- “TOC” frequency rank
- 64673
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tem | TOC |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Escalón. | Trastorno caracterizado por pensamientos intrusivos, repetitivos y persistentes que producen gran ansiedad y otras molestias que el afectado trata de mitigar mediante rituales repetitivos denominados compulsiones. |
Where the eye mixes tem and TOC
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Why the eye confuses tem with TOC
A purely visual mix-up. tem (/tem/) and TOC ([ˈt̪ok]) 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 64673, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tem is recorded at frequency rank #46,838, classified as anoun, pronounced /tem/. TOC is at rank #17,835, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈt̪ok].
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 64673, this pair ranks #44,919 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of tem vs TOC
Shared letters: t. Private to "tem": em. Private to "TOC": co.
"tem" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "TOC" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "tem" for "TOC" ever safe?
Frequency check: "tem" vs "TOC" - which ranks higher?
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 "tem" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "TOC" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #44,919 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tem" and "TOC" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "tem vs tomb". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #44,919 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.