aguantabavsapuntabaTell them apart

Which to use

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

#35,854
“aguantaba” frequency rank
#19,918
“apuntaba” frequency rank
55772
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature aguantaba apuntaba
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de aguantar o de aguantarse. Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de apuntar o de apuntarse.

Where the eye mixes aguantaba and apuntaba

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. aguantaba runs 9 letters (VCVVCCVCV) against apuntaba's 8 (VCVCCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
aguantaba
8 ch
apuntaba

Visual trap between aguantaba and apuntaba

A purely visual mix-up. aguantaba ([aɣ̞wãn̪ˈt̪aβ̞a]) and apuntaba ([apũn̪ˈt̪aβ̞a]) 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 55772, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

aguantaba is recorded at frequency rank #35,854, classified as averb, pronounced [aɣ̞wãn̪ˈt̪aβ̞a]. apuntaba is at rank #19,918, tagged as averb, pronounced [apũn̪ˈt̪aβ̞a].

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 55772, this pair ranks #77,411 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of aguantaba vs apuntaba

Shared letters: abntu. Private to "aguantaba": g. Private to "apuntaba": p.

"aguantaba" · 9 letters · shape VCVVCCVCV  ·  "apuntaba" · 8 letters · shape VCVCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • aguantabaagauntaba · agguantaba · aguanatba · aguanntaba · aguantaab · aguantabba · aguantava · aguantbaa
  • apuntabaapnutaba · appuntaba · apunatba · apunntaba · apuntaab · apuntabba · apuntava · apuntbaa

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "aguantaba" and "apuntaba" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([aɣ̞wãn̪ˈt̪aβ̞a] versus [apũn̪ˈt̪aβ̞a]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "aguantaba" or "apuntaba"?
"apuntaba" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,918 in our Spanish list, against #35,854 for "aguantaba". 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 "aguantaba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "apuntaba" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #77,411 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "aguantaba" and "apuntaba" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "aguantaba vs aguantas". 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 #77,411 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