Which to use
“cesan” and “citan” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #40,706
- “cesan” frequency rank
- #15,308
- “citan” frequency rank
- 56014
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cesan | citan |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de cesar. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de citar o de citarse. |
Where the eye mixes cesan and citan
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. cesan and citan follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses cesan with citan
A purely visual mix-up. cesan ([ˈsesãn]) and citan ([ˈsit̪ãn]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56014, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cesan is recorded at frequency rank #40,706, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈsesãn]. citan is at rank #15,308, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈsit̪ãn].
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 56014, this pair ranks #76,383 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of cesan vs citan
Shared letters: acn. Private to "cesan": es. Private to "citan": it.
"cesan" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "citan" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cesan" for "citan" ever safe?
Which is more common, "cesan" or "citan"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "cesan" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "citan" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #76,383 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cesan" and "citan" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ceba vs cesan". 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 #76,383 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.