Which to use
“alcanzaban” and “avanzaban” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #39,037
- “alcanzaban” frequency rank
- #42,283
- “avanzaban” frequency rank
- 81320
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | alcanzaban | avanzaban |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de alcanzar. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de avanzar. |
Where the eye mixes alcanzaban and avanzaban
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. alcanzaban runs 10 letters (VCCVCCVCVC) against avanzaban's 9 (VCVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between alcanzaban and avanzaban
A purely visual mix-up. alcanzaban ([alkãnˈsaβ̞ãn]) and avanzaban ([aβ̞ãnˈsaβ̞ãn]) 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 81320, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
alcanzaban is recorded at frequency rank #39,037, classified as averb, pronounced [alkãnˈsaβ̞ãn]. avanzaban is at rank #42,283, tagged as averb, pronounced [aβ̞ãnˈsaβ̞ãn].
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 81320, this pair ranks #10,548 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of alcanzaban vs avanzaban
Shared letters: abnz. Private to "alcanzaban": cl. Private to "avanzaban": v.
"alcanzaban" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCCVCVC · "avanzaban" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- alcanzaban ← aclanzaban · alacnzaban · alcanazban · alcannzaban · alcanzaabn · alcanzabann · alcanzabban · alcanzabna
- avanzaban ← aavnzaban · abanzaban · avanazban · avannzaban · avanzaabn · avanzabann · avanzabban · avanzabna
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "alcanzaban" and "avanzaban" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "alcanzaban" vs "avanzaban" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "alcanzaban" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "avanzaban" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #10,548 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "alcanzaban" and "avanzaban" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "alcanzaban vs alcanzarán". 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 #10,548 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.