atravesabavsatravesarConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#28,644
“atravesaba” frequency rank
#9,936
“atravesar” frequency rank
38580
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature atravesaba atravesar
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de atravesar o de atravesarse. Poner un madero u otra cosa que pase de una parte a otra.

Where the eye mixes atravesaba and atravesar

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. atravesaba runs 10 letters (VCCVCVCVCV) against atravesar's 9 (VCCVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

10 ch
atravesaba
9 ch
atravesar

Look-alike desk: atravesaba vs atravesar

A purely visual mix-up. atravesaba ([at̪ɾaβ̞eˈsaβ̞a]) and atravesar ([at̪ɾaβ̞eˈsaɾ]) 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 38580, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

atravesaba is recorded at frequency rank #28,644, classified as averb, pronounced [at̪ɾaβ̞eˈsaβ̞a]. atravesar is at rank #9,936, tagged as averb, pronounced [at̪ɾaβ̞eˈsaɾ].

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 38580, this pair ranks #169,220 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of atravesaba vs atravesar

Shared letters: aerstv. Private to "atravesaba": b. Private to "atravesar": -.

"atravesaba" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCVCVCV  ·  "atravesar" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • atravesaba ← artavesaba · atarvesaba · atrabesaba · atraevsaba · atraveasba · atravesaab · atravesabba · atravesava
  • atravesar ← artavesar · atarvesar · atrabesar · atraevsar · atraveasr · atravesarr · atravesra · atravessar

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "atravesaba" for "atravesar" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([at̪ɾaβ̞eˈsaβ̞a] versus [at̪ɾaβ̞eˈsaɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "atravesaba" vs "atravesar" - which ranks higher?
"atravesar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,936 in our Spanish list, against #28,644 for "atravesaba". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "atravesaba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "atravesar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #169,220 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "atravesaba" and "atravesar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "atravesaba vs atravesada". 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 #169,220 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list