capatazvscaptanWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: capataz is a noun, captan is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“capataz” is a noun and “captan” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#29,090
“capataz” frequency rank
#29,093
“captan” frequency rank
58183
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature capataz captan
Definition Persona encargada de dirigir y vigilar a sus trabajadores, por recomendaciones del patrón. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de captar.

Where the spellings diverge

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

7 ch
capataz
6 ch
captan

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: capataz is [kapaˈt̪as] while captan is [ˈkapt̪ãn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 58183, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

capataz is recorded at frequency rank #29,090, classified as anoun, pronounced [kapaˈt̪as]. captan is at rank #29,093, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkapt̪ãn].

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 58183, this pair ranks #67,439 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of capataz vs captan

Shared letters: acpt. Private to "capataz": z. Private to "captan": n.

"capataz" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "captan" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • capatazacpataz · caaptaz · capaatz · capatazz · capattaz · capatza · cappataz · captaaz
  • captanacptan · capatn · capptan · captann · captna · capttan · catpan · ccaptan

Frequency comparison

capataz#29,090
captan#29,093

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "capataz" and "captan" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "capataz" is a noun and "captan" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "capataz" or "captan"?
"capataz" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #29,090 in our Spanish list, against #29,093 for "captan". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering capataz vs captan

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “capataz”; for a verb, it's “captan”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “capataz” 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