Which to use
“contar” and “contó” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,192
- “contar” frequency rank
- #2,598
- “contó” frequency rank
- 3790
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | contar | contó |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Enumerar un grupo de cosas pertenecientes a la misma clase. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de contar. |
Where the eye mixes contar and contó
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses contar with contó
A purely visual mix-up. contar ([kõn̪ˈt̪aɾ]) and contó ([kõn̪ˈt̪o]) 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 3790, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
contar is recorded at frequency rank #1,192, classified as averb, pronounced [kõn̪ˈt̪aɾ]. contó is at rank #2,598, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõn̪ˈt̪o].
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 3790, this pair ranks #317,550 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of contar vs contó
Shared letters: cnot. Private to "contar": ar. Private to "contó": ó.
"contar" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "contó" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- contar ← ccontar · cnotar · conatr · conntar · contarr · conttar · cotnar · ocntar
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "contar" for "contó" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "contar" or "contó" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "contar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "contó" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #317,550 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "contar" and "contó" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "contó vs count". 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 #317,550 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.