conducíanvsconducirWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#42,353
“conducían” frequency rank
#3,993
“conducir” frequency rank
46346
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature conducían conducir
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de conducir o de conducirse. Llevar₁, transportar₁ [algo o a alguien] de una parte a otra.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set conducían and conducir apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
conducían
8 ch
conducir

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. conducían ([kõn̪d̪uˈsiãn]) and conducir ([kõn̪d̪uˈsiɾ]) 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 46346, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

conducían is recorded at frequency rank #42,353, classified as averb, pronounced [kõn̪d̪uˈsiãn]. conducir is at rank #3,993, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõn̪d̪uˈsiɾ].

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 46346, this pair ranks #126,261 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of conducían vs conducir

Shared letters: cdnou. Private to "conducían": . Private to "conducir": ir.

"conducían" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVVC  ·  "conducir" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • conducircconducir · cnoducir · codnucir · condcuir · condducir · conduccir · conducirr · conducri

Frequency comparison

conducían#42,353
conducir#3,993

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "conducían" and "conducir" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([kõn̪d̪uˈsiãn] versus [kõn̪d̪uˈsiɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "conducían" or "conducir"?
"conducir" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,993 in our Spanish list, against #42,353 for "conducían". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering conducían vs conducir

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 “conducían” 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