acortarvsapartarWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#26,683
“acortar” frequency rank
#19,916
“apartar” frequency rank
46599
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature acortar apartar
Definition Hacer más corto. Disminuir en longitud, extensión, duración, tiempo o cantidad. Alejar de un lugar o idea, desviar, echar, a un lado.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set acortar and apartar apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
acortar
7 ch
apartar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. acortar ([akoɾˈt̪aɾ]) and apartar ([apaɾˈt̪aɾ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46599, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

acortar is recorded at frequency rank #26,683, classified as averb, pronounced [akoɾˈt̪aɾ]. apartar is at rank #19,916, tagged as averb, pronounced [apaɾˈt̪aɾ].

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 46599, this pair ranks #124,807 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of acortar vs apartar

Shared letters: art. Private to "acortar": co. Private to "apartar": p.

"acortar" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC  ·  "apartar" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • acortaraccortar · acoratr · acorrtar · acortarr · acortra · acorttar · acotrar · acrotar
  • apartaraaprtar · aparatr · aparrtar · apartarr · apartra · aparttar · apatrar · appartar

Frequency comparison

acortar#26,683
apartar#19,916

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "acortar" and "apartar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([akoɾˈt̪aɾ] versus [apaɾˈt̪aɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "acortar" or "apartar"?
"apartar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,916 in our Spanish list, against #26,683 for "acortar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering acortar vs apartar

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 “acortar” 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