Which to use
“aparecían” and “apareció” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #17,338
- “aparecían” frequency rank
- #2,487
- “apareció” frequency rank
- 19825
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | aparecían | apareció |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de aparecer o de aparecerse. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de aparecer. |
Where the eye mixes aparecían and apareció
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. aparecían runs 9 letters (VCVCVCVVC) against apareció's 8 (VCVCVCVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between aparecían and apareció
A purely visual mix-up. aparecían ([apaɾeˈsiãn]) and apareció ([apaɾeˈsjo]) 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 19825, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
aparecían is recorded at frequency rank #17,338, classified as averb, pronounced [apaɾeˈsiãn]. apareció is at rank #2,487, tagged as averb, pronounced [apaɾeˈsjo].
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 19825, this pair ranks #262,051 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of aparecían vs apareció
Shared letters: acepr. Private to "aparecían": ní. Private to "apareció": ió.
"aparecían" · 9 letters · shape VCVCVCVVC · "apareció" · 8 letters · shape VCVCVCVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "aparecían" and "apareció" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "aparecían" or "apareció"?
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 "aparecían" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "apareció" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #262,051 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "aparecían" and "apareció" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "aparecían vs aparecieran". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #262,051 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.