Which to use
“tensa” is a verb and “tenue” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,738
- “tensa” frequency rank
- #25,064
- “tenue” frequency rank
- 40802
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tensa | tenue |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de tensar. | De poca o suave intensidad, fuerza, sustancia o consistencia. |
Where the eye mixes tensa and tenue
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. tensa (CVCCV) and tenue (CVCVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between tensa and tenue
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: tensa is [ˈt̪ẽnsa] while tenue is [ˈt̪enwe]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40802, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tensa is recorded at frequency rank #15,738, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈt̪ẽnsa]. tenue is at rank #25,064, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈt̪enwe].
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 40802, this pair ranks #157,138 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of tensa vs tenue
Shared letters: ent. Private to "tensa": as. Private to "tenue": u.
"tensa" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "tenue" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "tensa" and "tenue" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "tensa" or "tenue" 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 "tensa" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tenue" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #157,138 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tensa" and "tenue" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "teje vs tenue". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #157,138 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.