condenenvscontenerWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#44,065
“condenen” frequency rank
#5,936
“contener” frequency rank
50001
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature condenen contener
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de subjuntivo de condenar o de condenarse. Llevar en su interior, tener dentro de sí.

Where the eye mixes condenen and contener

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. condenen and contener follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.

8 ch
condenen
8 ch
contener

Look-alike desk: condenen vs contener

A purely visual mix-up. condenen ([kõn̪ˈd̪enẽn]) and contener ([kõn̪t̪eˈneɾ]) 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 50001, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

condenen is recorded at frequency rank #44,065, classified as averb, pronounced [kõn̪ˈd̪enẽn]. contener is at rank #5,936, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõn̪t̪eˈneɾ].

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 50001, this pair ranks #105,652 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of condenen vs contener

Shared letters: ceno. Private to "condenen": d. Private to "contener": rt.

"condenen" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "contener" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • condenen ← ccondenen · cnodenen · codnenen · conddenen · condeenn · condenenn · condennen · condneen
  • contener ← ccontener · cnotener · conetner · conntener · conteenr · contenerr · contenner · contenre

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "condenen" for "contener" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([kõn̪ˈd̪enẽn] versus [kõn̪t̪eˈneɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "condenen" or "contener"?
"contener" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,936 in our Spanish list, against #44,065 for "condenen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "condenen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "contener" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #105,652 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "condenen" and "contener" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "condenen vs convienen". 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 #105,652 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