acompañabavsacompañanWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#19,019
“acompañaba” frequency rank
#10,091
“acompañan” frequency rank
29110
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature acompañaba acompañan
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de acompañar. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de acompañar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set acompañaba and acompañan apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
acompañaba
9 ch
acompañan

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. acompañaba ([akõmpaˈɲaβ̞a]) and acompañan ([akõmˈpaɲãn]) 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 29110, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

acompañaba is recorded at frequency rank #19,019, classified as averb, pronounced [akõmpaˈɲaβ̞a]. acompañan is at rank #10,091, tagged as averb, pronounced [akõmˈpaɲãn].

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 29110, this pair ranks #218,643 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of acompañaba vs acompañan

Shared letters: acmopñ. Private to "acompañaba": b. Private to "acompañan": n.

"acompañaba" · 10 letters · shape VCVCCVCVCV  ·  "acompañan" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVCVC

Frequency comparison

acompañaba#19,019
acompañan#10,091

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "acompañaba" and "acompañan" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([akõmpaˈɲaβ̞a] versus [akõmˈpaɲãn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "acompañaba" or "acompañan"?
"acompañan" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,091 in our Spanish list, against #19,019 for "acompañaba". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering acompañaba vs acompañan

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “acompañaba” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list