compañíasvscomponíanConfusable pair

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

Which to use

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

#2,548
“compañías” frequency rank
#36,480
“componían” frequency rank
39028
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature compañías componían
Definition Forma del plural de compañía. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de componer.

Where the eye mixes compañías and componían

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

9 ch
compañías
9 ch
componían

Why the eye confuses compañías with componían

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: compañías is [kõmpaˈɲias] while componían is [kõmpoˈniãn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39028, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

compañías is recorded at frequency rank #2,548, classified as anoun, pronounced [kõmpaˈɲias]. componían is at rank #36,480, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõmpoˈniãn].

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 39028, this pair ranks #166,762 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of compañías vs componían

Shared letters: acmopí. Private to "compañías": . Private to "componían": n.

"compañías" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVVC  ·  "componían" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "compañías" for "componían" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "compañías" is a noun and "componían" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "compañías" or "componían"?
"compañías" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,548 in our Spanish list, against #36,480 for "componían". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "compañías" and "componían" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "compañías" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "componían" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #166,762 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "compañías" and "componían" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "compensan vs componían". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #166,762 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