couldn't

/ˈkʊd.(ə)nt/

//ˈkʊd.(ə)nt// contraction

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“couldn't” is uncommon Spanish (frequency #98,280 among 77,812 “C” headwords), classed as a contraction. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#98,280
frequency rank, Spanish
77,812
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Contracción de el verbo could y el adverbio not: no podía, no pude, no podría.

Key facts for couldn't
PropertyValue
Headwordcouldn't
LanguageSpanish
Part of speechContraction
IPA/ˈkʊd.(ə)nt/
Letters8
Frequency rank#98,280
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “couldn't” sits in Spanish frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). couldn't lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

couldn't is uncommon Spanish at frequency #98,280 among 77,812 “C” headwords, classed as acontraction, transcribed /ˈkʊd.(ə)nt/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Contracción de el verbo could y el adverbio not: no podía, no pude, no podría.".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for couldn't, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

No documented word history exists for this headword, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct Spanish form is couldn't, spelled C-O-U-L-D-N-'-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Contracción de el verbo could y el adverbio not: no podía, no pude, no podría.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 Spanish corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "couldn't"?
"couldn't" is spelled C-O-U-L-D-N-'-T. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈkʊd.(ə)nt/.
What does "couldn't" mean?
As a contraction, "couldn't" means: Contracción de el verbo could y el adverbio not: no podía, no pude, no podría.
How do you pronounce "couldn't"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "couldn't" is /ˈkʊd.(ə)nt/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "couldn't" come from?
"couldn't" is a Spanish word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “couldn't”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct Spanish spelling is C-O-U-L-D-N-'-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /ˈkʊd.(ə)nt/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more Spanish words and confusable pairs in the same reference. Spanish words

Other uncommon Spanish words near this rank

Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list