abvsatWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: ab is a preposition, at is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“ab” is a preposition and “at” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#11,338
“ab” frequency rank
#4,857
“at” frequency rank
16195
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ab at
Definition Preposición que indica generalmente separación, alejamiento, privación de la cosa o acción significada por el simple. Símbolo tipográfico (@) muy utilizado en informática e internet, en particular como parte de las direcciones de correo electrónico.

Where the eye mixes ab and at

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

2 ch
ab
2 ch
at

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ab is [ˈaβ̞] while at is [ˈat̪]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - b in “ab” becomes t in “at”, and the parts of speech differ too (preposition vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16195, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ab is recorded at frequency rank #11,338, classified as aprep, pronounced [ˈaβ̞]. at is at rank #4,857, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈat̪].

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 16195, this pair ranks #277,135 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of ab vs at

Shared letters: a. Private to "ab": b. Private to "at": t.

"ab" · 2 letters · shape VC  ·  "at" · 2 letters · shape VC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ab" and "at" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "ab" is a preposition and "at" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "ab" or "at"?
"at" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,857 in our Spanish list, against #11,338 for "ab". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list