controlenvscontroloConfusable pair

Which to use

“controlen” and “controlo” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#33,042
“controlen” frequency rank
#36,491
“controlo” frequency rank
69533
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature controlen controlo
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de subjuntivo de controlar o de controlarse. Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de indicativo de controlar o de controlarse.

Where the eye mixes controlen and controlo

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.

9 ch
controlen
8 ch
controlo

Why the eye confuses controlen with controlo

A purely visual mix-up. controlen ([kõn̪ˈt̪ɾolẽn]) and controlo ([kõn̪ˈt̪ɾolo]) 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 69533, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

controlen is recorded at frequency rank #33,042, classified as averb, pronounced [kõn̪ˈt̪ɾolẽn]. controlo is at rank #36,491, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõn̪ˈt̪ɾolo].

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 69533, this pair ranks #31,788 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of controlen vs controlo

Shared letters: clnort. Private to "controlen": e. Private to "controlo": -.

"controlen" · 9 letters · shape CVCCCVCVC  ·  "controlo" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • controlenccontrolen · cnotrolen · conntrolen · conrtolen · contorlen · contrloen · controeln · controlenn
  • controloccontrolo · cnotrolo · conntrolo · conrtolo · contorlo · contrloo · controllo · controol

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "controlen" and "controlo" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([kõn̪ˈt̪ɾolẽn] versus [kõn̪ˈt̪ɾolo]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "controlen" vs "controlo" - which ranks higher?
"controlen" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #33,042 in our Spanish list, against #36,491 for "controlo". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "controlen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "controlo" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #31,788 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "controlen" and "controlo" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "contraten vs controlen". 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 #31,788 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list