venvsvesConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#730
“ven” frequency rank
#1,048
“ves” frequency rank
1778
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ven ves
Definition Segunda persona del singular (tú) del imperativo afirmativo de venir. Segunda persona del singular (tú, vos) del presente de indicativo de ver o de verse.

Where the eye mixes ven and ves

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

3 ch
ven
3 ch
ves

Look-alike desk: ven vs ves

A purely visual mix-up. ven ([ˈbẽn]) and ves ([ˈbes]) 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 - n in “ven” becomes s in “ves”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1778, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ven is recorded at frequency rank #730, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈbẽn]. ves is at rank #1,048, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈbes].

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 1778, this pair ranks #321,485 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of ven vs ves

Shared letters: ev. Private to "ven": n. Private to "ves": s.

"ven" · 3 letters · shape CVC  ·  "ves" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "ven" for "ves" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([ˈbẽn] versus [ˈbes]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary Spanish text, does "ven" or "ves" show up more?
"ven" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #730 in our Spanish list, against #1,048 for "ves". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "ven" and "ves" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "ven" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "ves" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #321,485 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "ven" and "ves" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ves vs VOR". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #321,485 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list