Which to use
“tendían” and “tenías” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #48,111
- “tendían” frequency rank
- #6,240
- “tenías” frequency rank
- 54351
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tendían | tenías |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de tender o de tenderse. | Segunda persona del singular (tú, vos) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de tener o de tenerse. |
Where the eye mixes tendían and tenías
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. tendían runs 7 letters (CVCCVVC) against tenías's 6 (CVCVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: tendían vs tenías
A purely visual mix-up. tendían ([t̪ẽn̪ˈd̪iãn]) and tenías ([t̪eˈnias]) 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 54351, 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]. tenías is at rank #6,240, tagged as averb, pronounced [t̪eˈnias].
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 54351, this pair ranks #83,733 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of tendían vs tenías
Shared letters: aentí. Private to "tendían": d. Private to "tenías": s.
"tendían" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC · "tenías" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "tendían" and "tenías" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "tendían" or "tenías" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "tendían" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tenías" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #83,733 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tendían" and "tenías" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "tendía vs tendían". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #83,733 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.