aprobévsaprobóWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#39,575
“aprobé” frequency rank
#4,677
“aprobó” frequency rank
44252
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature aprobé aprobó
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de aprobar. Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de aprobar.

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
aprobé
6 ch
aprobó

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. aprobé ([apɾoˈβ̞e]) and aprobó ([apɾoˈβ̞o]) 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 a single letter - é in “aprobé” becomes ó in “aprobó”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44252, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

aprobé is recorded at frequency rank #39,575, classified as averb, pronounced [apɾoˈβ̞e]. aprobó is at rank #4,677, tagged as averb, pronounced [apɾoˈβ̞o].

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 44252, this pair ranks #138,101 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of aprobé vs aprobó

Shared letters: abopr. Private to "aprobé": é. Private to "aprobó": ó.

"aprobé" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV  ·  "aprobó" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV

Frequency comparison

aprobé#39,575
aprobó#4,677

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "aprobé" and "aprobó" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([apɾoˈβ̞e] versus [apɾoˈβ̞o]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "aprobé" or "aprobó"?
"aprobó" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,677 in our Spanish list, against #39,575 for "aprobé". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering aprobé vs aprobó

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 “aprobé” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list