tememosvstenemosWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#32,008
“tememos” frequency rank
#229
“tenemos” frequency rank
32237
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature tememos tenemos
Definition Primera persona del plural (nosotros, nosotras) del presente de subjuntivo de temar. Primera persona del plural (nosotros, nosotras) del presente de indicativo de tener o de tenerse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set tememos and tenemos apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
tememos
7 ch
tenemos

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. tememos ([t̪eˈmemos]) and tenemos ([t̪eˈnemos]) 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 a single letter - m in “tememos” becomes n in “tenemos”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32237, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

tememos is recorded at frequency rank #32,008, classified as averb, pronounced [t̪eˈmemos]. tenemos is at rank #229, tagged as averb, pronounced [t̪eˈnemos].

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 32237, this pair ranks #203,049 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of tememos vs tenemos

Shared letters: emost. Private to "tememos": -. Private to "tenemos": n.

"tememos" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "tenemos" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • tememosetmemos · teemmos · tememmos · tememoss · tememso · temeoms · temmemos · temmeos
  • tenemosetnemos · teenmos · tenemmos · tenemoss · tenemso · teneoms · tenmeos · tennemos

Frequency comparison

tememos#32,008
tenemos#229

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "tememos" and "tenemos" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([t̪eˈmemos] versus [t̪eˈnemos]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "tememos" or "tenemos"?
"tenemos" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #229 in our Spanish list, against #32,008 for "tememos". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering tememos vs tenemos

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “tememos” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list