Which to use
“contestas” and “contestaste” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #24,805
- “contestas” frequency rank
- #40,730
- “contestaste” frequency rank
- 65535
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | contestas | contestaste |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Segunda persona del singular (tú) del presente de indicativo de contestar. | Segunda persona del singular (tú, vos) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de contestar. |
Where the eye mixes contestas and contestaste
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. contestas runs 9 letters (CVCCVCCVC) against contestaste's 11 (CVCCVCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses contestas with contestaste
A purely visual mix-up. contestas ([kõn̪ˈt̪est̪as]) and contestaste ([kõn̪t̪esˈt̪ast̪e]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “contestas” sits inside “contestaste”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 65535, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
contestas is recorded at frequency rank #24,805, classified as averb, pronounced [kõn̪ˈt̪est̪as]. contestaste is at rank #40,730, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõn̪t̪esˈt̪ast̪e].
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 65535, this pair ranks #42,356 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of contestas vs contestaste
Shared letters: acenost. Private to "contestas": -. Private to "contestaste": -.
"contestas" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "contestaste" · 11 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- contestas ← ccontestas · cnotestas · conetstas · conntestas · contesats · contesstas · contestass · contestsa
- contestaste ← ccontestaste · cnotestaste · conetstaste · conntestaste · contesatste · contesstaste · contestaset · contestasste
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "contestas" for "contestaste" ever safe?
Which is more common, "contestas" or "contestaste"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "contestas" and "contestaste" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "contestas" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "contestaste" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #42,356 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "contestas" and "contestaste" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "contentar vs contestas". 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 #42,356 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.