conducíanvsconduzcanWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#42,353
“conducían” frequency rank
#34,019
“conduzcan” frequency rank
76372
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature conducían conduzcan
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de conducir o de conducirse. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de subjuntivo de conducir o de conducirse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set conducían and conduzcan apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
conducían
9 ch
conduzcan

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. conducían ([kõn̪d̪uˈsiãn]) and conduzcan ([kõn̪ˈd̪uskãn]) 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 76372, 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]. conduzcan is at rank #34,019, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõn̪ˈd̪uskãn].

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 76372, this pair ranks #17,865 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of conducían vs conduzcan

Shared letters: acdnou. Private to "conducían": í. Private to "conduzcan": z.

"conducían" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVVC  ·  "conduzcan" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • conduzcancconduzcan · cnoduzcan · codnuzcan · condduzcan · conduczan · conduzacn · conduzcann · conduzccan

Frequency comparison

conducían#42,353
conduzcan#34,019

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "conducían" and "conduzcan" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([kõn̪d̪uˈsiãn] versus [kõn̪ˈd̪uskãn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "conducían" or "conduzcan"?
"conduzcan" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #34,019 in our Spanish list, against #42,353 for "conducían". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering conducían vs conduzcan

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