Which to use
“contenían” and “contestan” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #19,965
- “contenían” frequency rank
- #19,967
- “contestan” frequency rank
- 39932
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | contenían | contestan |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de contener o de contenerse. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de contestar. |
Where the eye mixes contenían and contestan
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. contenían (CVCCVCVVC) and contestan (CVCCVCCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses contenían with contestan
A purely visual mix-up. contenían ([kõn̪t̪eˈniãn]) and contestan ([kõn̪ˈt̪est̪ãn]) 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 39932, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
contenían is recorded at frequency rank #19,965, classified as averb, pronounced [kõn̪t̪eˈniãn]. contestan is at rank #19,967, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõn̪ˈt̪est̪ãn].
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 39932, this pair ranks #161,855 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of contenían vs contestan
Shared letters: acenot. Private to "contenían": í. Private to "contestan": s.
"contenían" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVVC · "contestan" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- contestan ← ccontestan · cnotestan · conetstan · conntestan · contesatn · contesstan · contestann · contestna
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "contenían" for "contestan" ever safe?
Frequency check: "contenían" vs "contestan" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "contenían" and "contestan" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "contenían" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "contestan" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #161,855 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "contenían" and "contestan" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "contestan vs contrastan". 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 #161,855 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.