Which to use
“controlador” is an adjective and “controlar” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #17,651
- “controlador” frequency rank
- #2,202
- “controlar” frequency rank
- 19853
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | controlador | controlar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Que controla. | Tener el control sobre algo o alguien, ejercer el dominio sobre algo o alguien. |
Where the eye mixes controlador and controlar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between controlador and controlar
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: controlador is [kõn̪t̪ɾolaˈð̞oɾ] while controlar is [kõn̪t̪ɾoˈlaɾ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 19853, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
controlador is recorded at frequency rank #17,651, classified as anadj, pronounced [kõn̪t̪ɾolaˈð̞oɾ]. controlar is at rank #2,202, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõn̪t̪ɾoˈlaɾ].
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 19853, this pair ranks #261,938 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of controlador vs controlar
Shared letters: aclnort. Private to "controlador": d. Private to "controlar": -.
"controlador" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVCVCVC · "controlar" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- controlador ← ccontrolador · cnotrolador · conntrolador · conrtolador · contorlador · contrloador · controaldor · controladdor
- controlar ← ccontrolar · cnotrolar · conntrolar · conrtolar · contorlar · contrloar · controalr · controlarr
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "controlador" for "controlar" ever safe?
Frequency check: "controlador" vs "controlar" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "controlador" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "controlar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #261,938 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "controlador" and "controlar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "controlador vs controladora". 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 #261,938 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.