consultanvsconsumíanWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#44,069
“consultan” frequency rank
#45,833
“consumían” frequency rank
89902
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature consultan consumían
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de consultar. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de consumir o de consumirse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set consultan and consumían apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
consultan
9 ch
consumían

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. consultan ([kõnˈsul̪t̪ãn]) and consumían ([kõnsuˈmiãn]) 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 89902, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

consultan is recorded at frequency rank #44,069, classified as averb, pronounced [kõnˈsul̪t̪ãn]. consumían is at rank #45,833, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõnsuˈmiãn].

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 89902, this pair ranks #2,818 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of consultan vs consumían

Shared letters: acnosu. Private to "consultan": lt. Private to "consumían": .

"consultan" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC  ·  "consumían" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • consultancconsultan · cnosultan · connsultan · conslutan · conssultan · consulatn · consulltan · consultann

Frequency comparison

consultan#44,069
consumían#45,833

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "consultan" and "consumían" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([kõnˈsul̪t̪ãn] versus [kõnsuˈmiãn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "consultan" or "consumían"?
"consultan" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #44,069 in our Spanish list, against #45,833 for "consumían". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering consultan vs consumían

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 “consultan” 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