vivsvosWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: vi is a verb, vos is a pronoun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“vi” is a verb and “vos” is a pronoun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#543
“vi” frequency rank
#493
“vos” frequency rank
1036
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vi vos
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de ver o de verse. Pronombre personal formal y hoy arcaico de la segunda persona del singular y del plural; el paradigma verbal está plenamente asimilado al de vosotros.

Where the eye mixes vi and vos

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.

2 ch
vi
3 ch
vos

Why the eye confuses vi with vos

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: vi is [ˈbi] while vos is [ˈbos]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs pronoun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1036, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vi is recorded at frequency rank #543, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈbi]. vos is at rank #493, tagged as apron, pronounced [ˈbos].

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 1036, this pair ranks #322,652 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of vi vs vos

Shared letters: v. Private to "vi": i. Private to "vos": os.

"vi" · 2 letters · shape CV  ·  "vos" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vi" and "vos" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "vi" is a verb and "vos" a pronoun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
In ordinary Spanish text, does "vi" or "vos" show up more?
"vos" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #493 in our Spanish list, against #543 for "vi". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "vi" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "vos" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #322,652 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "vi" and "vos" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "vi vs VOR". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #322,652 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