compranvscompróConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#9,426
“compran” frequency rank
#5,293
“compró” frequency rank
14719
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature compran compró
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de comprar. Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de comprar.

Where the eye mixes compran and compró

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

7 ch
compran
6 ch
compró

Why the eye confuses compran with compró

A purely visual mix-up. compran ([ˈkõmpɾãn]) and compró ([kõmˈpɾo]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14719, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

compran is recorded at frequency rank #9,426, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkõmpɾãn]. compró is at rank #5,293, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõmˈpɾo].

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 14719, this pair ranks #283,041 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of compran vs compró

Shared letters: cmopr. Private to "compran": an. Private to "compró": ó.

"compran" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC  ·  "compró" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • compranccompran · cmopran · commpran · comparn · comppran · comprann · comprna · comprran

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "compran" and "compró" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([ˈkõmpɾãn] versus [kõmˈpɾo]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "compran" or "compró"?
"compró" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,293 in our Spanish list, against #9,426 for "compran". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "compran" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "compró" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #283,041 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "compran" and "compró" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "comerán vs compran". 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 #283,041 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