adoptarvsapostarWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#4,849
“adoptar” frequency rank
#9,581
“apostar” frequency rank
14430
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature adoptar apostar
Definition Llevar a cabo una adopción, el acto de recibir a alguien en una relación de parentesco (como hijo o pariente propios), con los requisitos legales del caso. Pactar que si no se verifica lo que alguno asegura perderá una cantidad o cosa.

Where the eye mixes adoptar and apostar

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

7 ch
adoptar
7 ch
apostar

Visual trap between adoptar and apostar

A purely visual mix-up. adoptar ([að̞opˈt̪aɾ]) and apostar ([aposˈt̪aɾ]) 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 14430, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

adoptar is recorded at frequency rank #4,849, classified as averb, pronounced [að̞opˈt̪aɾ]. apostar is at rank #9,581, tagged as averb, pronounced [aposˈt̪aɾ].

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 14430, this pair ranks #284,134 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of adoptar vs apostar

Shared letters: aoprt. Private to "adoptar": d. Private to "apostar": s.

"adoptar" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC  ·  "apostar" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • adoptaraddoptar · adopatr · adopptar · adoptarr · adoptra · adopttar · adotpar · adpotar
  • apostaraopstar · aposatr · aposstar · apostarr · apostra · aposttar · apotsar · appostar

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "adoptar" and "apostar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([að̞opˈt̪aɾ] versus [aposˈt̪aɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "adoptar" or "apostar"?
"adoptar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,849 in our Spanish list, against #9,581 for "apostar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "adoptar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "apostar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #284,134 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "adoptar" and "apostar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "apostar vs azotar". 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 #284,134 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list