tendíavstenéisWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#39,484
“tendía” frequency rank
#4,204
“tenéis” frequency rank
43688
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature tendía tenéis
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de tender o de tenderse. Segunda persona del plural (vosotros, vosotras) del presente de indicativo de tener.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set tendía and tenéis apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
tendía
6 ch
tenéis

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. tendía ([t̪ẽn̪ˈd̪ia]) and tenéis ([t̪eˈnejs]) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43688, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

tendía is recorded at frequency rank #39,484, classified as averb, pronounced [t̪ẽn̪ˈd̪ia]. tenéis is at rank #4,204, tagged as averb, pronounced [t̪eˈnejs].

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 43688, this pair ranks #141,260 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of tendía vs tenéis

Shared letters: ent. Private to "tendía": adí. Private to "tenéis": isé.

"tendía" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVV  ·  "tenéis" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC

Frequency comparison

tendía#39,484
tenéis#4,204

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "tendía" and "tenéis" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([t̪ẽn̪ˈd̪ia] versus [t̪eˈnejs]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "tendía" or "tenéis"?
"tenéis" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,204 in our Spanish list, against #39,484 for "tendía". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering tendía vs tenéis

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 “tendía” 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