caminanvscaminandoWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#17,064
“caminan” frequency rank
#3,616
“caminando” frequency rank
20680
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature caminan caminando
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de caminar. Gerundio de caminar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set caminan and caminando apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
caminan
9 ch
caminando

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. caminan ([kaˈminãn]) and caminando ([kamiˈnãn̪d̪o]) 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) - “caminan” sits inside “caminando”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20680, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

caminan is recorded at frequency rank #17,064, classified as averb, pronounced [kaˈminãn]. caminando is at rank #3,616, tagged as averb, pronounced [kamiˈnãn̪d̪o].

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 20680, this pair ranks #258,275 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of caminan vs caminando

Shared letters: acimn. Private to "caminan": -. Private to "caminando": do.

"caminan" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "caminando" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • caminanacminan · caimnan · camiann · caminann · caminnan · camminan · camnian · ccaminan
  • caminandoacminando · caimnando · camianndo · caminadno · caminanddo · caminanndo · caminanod · caminnado

Frequency comparison

caminan#17,064
caminando#3,616

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "caminan" and "caminando" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([kaˈminãn] versus [kamiˈnãn̪d̪o]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "caminan" or "caminando"?
"caminando" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,616 in our Spanish list, against #17,064 for "caminan". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering caminan vs caminando

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 “caminan” 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