Which to use
“acaban” and “andaban” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,892
- “acaban” frequency rank
- #17,861
- “andaban” frequency rank
- 21753
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | acaban | andaban |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de acabar. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de andar o de andarse. |
Where the eye mixes acaban and andaban
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. acaban runs 6 letters (VCVCVC) against andaban's 7 (VCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between acaban and andaban
A purely visual mix-up. acaban ([aˈkaβ̞ãn]) and andaban ([ãn̪ˈd̪aβ̞ãn]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21753, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
acaban is recorded at frequency rank #3,892, classified as averb, pronounced [aˈkaβ̞ãn]. andaban is at rank #17,861, tagged as averb, pronounced [ãn̪ˈd̪aβ̞ãn].
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 21753, this pair ranks #253,493 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of acaban vs andaban
Shared letters: abn. Private to "acaban": c. Private to "andaban": d.
"acaban" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC · "andaban" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "acaban" and "andaban" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "acaban" vs "andaban" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "acaban" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "andaban" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #253,493 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "acaban" and "andaban" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "andaban vs andará". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #253,493 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.