autorizabavsautorizarTell them apart

Which to use

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

#48,233
“autorizaba” frequency rank
#16,763
“autorizar” frequency rank
64996
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature autorizaba autorizar
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de autorizar. Dar a alguien autoridad o facultad para hacer algo.

Where the eye mixes autorizaba and autorizar

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

10 ch
autorizaba
9 ch
autorizar

Visual trap between autorizaba and autorizar

A purely visual mix-up. autorizaba ([awt̪oɾiˈsaβ̞a]) and autorizar ([awt̪oɾiˈsaɾ]) 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 64996, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

autorizaba is recorded at frequency rank #48,233, classified as averb, pronounced [awt̪oɾiˈsaβ̞a]. autorizar is at rank #16,763, tagged as averb, pronounced [awt̪oɾiˈsaɾ].

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 64996, this pair ranks #43,930 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of autorizaba vs autorizar

Shared letters: aiortuz. Private to "autorizaba": b. Private to "autorizar": -.

"autorizaba" · 10 letters · shape VVCVCVCVCV  ·  "autorizar" · 9 letters · shape VVCVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • autorizaba ← atuorizaba · auotrizaba · autoirzaba · autoriazba · autorizaab · autorizabba · autorizava · autorizbaa
  • autorizar ← atuorizar · auotrizar · autoirzar · autoriazr · autorizarr · autorizra · autorizzar · autorrizar

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "autorizaba" and "autorizar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([awt̪oɾiˈsaβ̞a] versus [awt̪oɾiˈsaɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "autorizaba" or "autorizar"?
"autorizar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,763 in our Spanish list, against #48,233 for "autorizaba". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "autorizaba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "autorizar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #43,930 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "autorizaba" and "autorizar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "autorizaba vs autorizan". 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 #43,930 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