Which to use
“controlaba” and “controlaban” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #25,196
- “controlaba” frequency rank
- #38,602
- “controlaban” frequency rank
- 63798
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | controlaba | controlaban |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de controlar o de controlarse. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de controlar. |
Where the eye mixes controlaba and controlaban
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 10 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between controlaba and controlaban
A purely visual mix-up. controlaba ([kõn̪t̪ɾoˈlaβ̞a]) and controlaban ([kõn̪t̪ɾoˈlaβ̞ãn]) 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 extra letter(s) - “controlaba” sits inside “controlaban”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63798, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
controlaba is recorded at frequency rank #25,196, classified as averb, pronounced [kõn̪t̪ɾoˈlaβ̞a]. controlaban is at rank #38,602, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõn̪t̪ɾoˈlaβ̞ãn].
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 63798, this pair ranks #47,582 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of controlaba vs controlaban
Shared letters: abclnort. Private to "controlaba": -. Private to "controlaban": -.
"controlaba" · 10 letters · shape CVCCCVCVCV · "controlaban" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- controlaba ← ccontrolaba · cnotrolaba · conntrolaba · conrtolaba · contorlaba · contrloaba · controalba · controlaab
- controlaban ← ccontrolaban · cnotrolaban · conntrolaban · conrtolaban · contorlaban · contrloaban · controalban · controlaabn
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "controlaba" and "controlaban" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "controlaba" or "controlaban" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "controlaba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "controlaban" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #47,582 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "controlaba" and "controlaban" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "controlaban vs controladas". 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 #47,582 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.