vai vs vas, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#39,008
“vai” frequency rank: #323
“vas” frequency rank: 39331
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	vai	vas
Definition	Tercera persona del singular (el, ela, vostede) del presente de indicativo de ir.	Segunda persona del singular (tú, vos) del presente de indicativo de ir o de irse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set vai and vas apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch

vai

3 ch

vas

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. vai ([ˈba̠j]) and vas ([ˈbas]) 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 - i in “vai” becomes s in “vas”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39331, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vai is recorded at frequency rank #39,008, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈba̠j]. vas is at rank #323, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈbas].

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 39331, this pair ranks #165,117 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of vai vs vas

Shared letters: av. Private to "vai": i. Private to "vas": s.

"vai" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "vas" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequency comparison

vai#39,008

vas#323

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vai" and "vas" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently ([ˈba̠j] versus [ˈbas]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "vai" or "vas"?

"vas" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #323 in our Spanish list, against #39,008 for "vai". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering vai vs vas

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 “vai” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable