aleganvsalteranWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#30,322
“alegan” frequency rank
#29,473
“alteran” frequency rank
59795
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature alegan alteran
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de alegar. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de alterar.

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
alegan
7 ch
alteran

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. alegan ([aˈleɣ̞ãn]) and alteran ([al̪ˈt̪eɾãn]) 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 59795, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

alegan is recorded at frequency rank #30,322, classified as averb, pronounced [aˈleɣ̞ãn]. alteran is at rank #29,473, tagged as averb, pronounced [al̪ˈt̪eɾãn].

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 59795, this pair ranks #61,314 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of alegan vs alteran

Shared letters: aeln. Private to "alegan": g. Private to "alteran": rt.

"alegan" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC  ·  "alteran" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • aleganaelgan · aleagn · alegann · aleggan · alegna · algean · allegan · laegan
  • alteranaletran · allteran · altearn · alterann · alterran · altrean · altteran · atleran

Frequency comparison

alegan#30,322
alteran#29,473

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "alegan" and "alteran" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([aˈleɣ̞ãn] versus [al̪ˈt̪eɾãn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "alegan" or "alteran"?
"alteran" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #29,473 in our Spanish list, against #30,322 for "alegan". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering alegan vs alteran

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 “alegan” 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