alimentanvsalimentandoWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#12,969
“alimentan” frequency rank
#22,567
“alimentando” frequency rank
35536
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature alimentan alimentando
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de alimentar. Gerundio de alimentar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set alimentan and alimentando apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
alimentan
11 ch
alimentando

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. alimentan ([aliˈmẽn̪t̪ãn]) and alimentando ([alimẽn̪ˈt̪ãn̪d̪o]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “alimentan” sits inside “alimentando”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35536, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

alimentan is recorded at frequency rank #12,969, classified as averb, pronounced [aliˈmẽn̪t̪ãn]. alimentando is at rank #22,567, tagged as averb, pronounced [alimẽn̪ˈt̪ãn̪d̪o].

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 35536, this pair ranks #185,544 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of alimentan vs alimentando

Shared letters: aeilmnt. Private to "alimentan": -. Private to "alimentando": do.

"alimentan" · 9 letters · shape VCVCVCCVC  ·  "alimentando" · 11 letters · shape VCVCVCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • alimentanailmentan · aliemntan · alimenatn · alimenntan · alimentann · alimentna · alimenttan · alimetnan
  • alimentandoailmentando · aliemntando · alimenatndo · alimenntando · alimentadno · alimentanddo · alimentanndo · alimentanod

Frequency comparison

alimentan#12,969
alimentando#22,567

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "alimentan" and "alimentando" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([aliˈmẽn̪t̪ãn] versus [alimẽn̪ˈt̪ãn̪d̪o]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "alimentan" or "alimentando"?
"alimentan" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,969 in our Spanish list, against #22,567 for "alimentando". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering alimentan vs alimentando

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 “alimentan” 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