Which to use
“tendían” and “tendrían” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #48,111
- “tendían” frequency rank
- #5,899
- “tendrían” frequency rank
- 54010
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tendían | tendrían |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de tender o de tenderse. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del condicional de tener o de tenerse. |
Where the eye mixes tendían and tendrían
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. tendían runs 7 letters (CVCCVVC) against tendrían's 8 (CVCCCVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses tendían with tendrían
A purely visual mix-up. tendían ([t̪ẽn̪ˈd̪iãn]) and tendrían ([t̪ẽn̪ˈd̪ɾiãn]) 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 54010, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tendían is recorded at frequency rank #48,111, classified as averb, pronounced [t̪ẽn̪ˈd̪iãn]. tendrían is at rank #5,899, tagged as averb, pronounced [t̪ẽn̪ˈd̪ɾiãn].
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 54010, this pair ranks #85,228 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of tendían vs tendrían
Shared letters: adentí. Private to "tendían": -. Private to "tendrían": r.
"tendían" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC · "tendrían" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "tendían" for "tendrían" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "tendían" or "tendrían" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "tendían" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tendrían" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #85,228 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tendían" and "tendrían" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "tendía vs tendían". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #85,228 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.