complicanvscomplicandoWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#31,713
“complican” frequency rank
#42,892
“complicando” frequency rank
74605
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature complican complicando
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de complicar. Gerundio de complicar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set complican and complicando apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
complican
11 ch
complicando

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. complican ([kõmˈplikãn]) and complicando ([kõmpliˈkãn̪d̪o]) 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) - “complican” sits inside “complicando”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 74605, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

complican is recorded at frequency rank #31,713, classified as averb, pronounced [kõmˈplikãn]. complicando is at rank #42,892, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõmpliˈkãn̪d̪o].

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 74605, this pair ranks #21,027 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of complican vs complicando

Shared letters: acilmnop. Private to "complican": -. Private to "complicando": d.

"complican" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCVC  ·  "complicando" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • complicanccomplican · cmoplican · comlpican · commplican · compilcan · complcian · compliacn · complicann
  • complicandoccomplicando · cmoplicando · comlpicando · commplicando · compilcando · complciando · compliacndo · complicadno

Frequency comparison

complican#31,713
complicando#42,892

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "complican" and "complicando" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([kõmˈplikãn] versus [kõmpliˈkãn̪d̪o]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "complican" or "complicando"?
"complican" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #31,713 in our Spanish list, against #42,892 for "complicando". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering complican vs complicando

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 “complican” 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