Which to use
“contaba” and “contará” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,872
- “contaba” frequency rank
- #13,648
- “contará” frequency rank
- 18520
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | contaba | contará |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de contar. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del futuro de indicativo de contar. |
Where the eye mixes contaba and contará
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses contaba with contará
A purely visual mix-up. contaba ([kõn̪ˈt̪aβ̞a]) and contará ([kõn̪t̪aˈɾa]) 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 18520, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
contaba is recorded at frequency rank #4,872, classified as averb, pronounced [kõn̪ˈt̪aβ̞a]. contará is at rank #13,648, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõn̪t̪aˈɾa].
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 18520, this pair ranks #267,586 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of contaba vs contará
Shared letters: acnot. Private to "contaba": b. Private to "contará": rá.
"contaba" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV · "contará" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- contaba ← ccontaba · cnotaba · conatba · conntaba · contaab · contabba · contava · contbaa
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "contaba" and "contará" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "contaba" or "contará"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "contaba" and "contará" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "contaba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "contará" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #267,586 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "contaba" and "contará" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "contará vs cortarla". 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 #267,586 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.