corríavscorríanWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#12,566
“corría” frequency rank
#24,081
“corrían” frequency rank
36647
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature corría corrían
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de correr o de correrse. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de correr o de correrse.

Where the eye mixes corría and corrían

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

6 ch
corría
7 ch
corrían

Why the eye confuses corría with corrían

A purely visual mix-up. corría ([koˈria]) and corrían ([koˈriãn]) 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) - “corría” sits inside “corrían”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36647, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

corría is recorded at frequency rank #12,566, classified as averb, pronounced [koˈria]. corrían is at rank #24,081, tagged as averb, pronounced [koˈriãn].

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 36647, this pair ranks #179,537 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of corría vs corrían

Shared letters: acorí. Private to "corría": -. Private to "corrían": n.

"corría" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVV  ·  "corrían" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "corría" and "corrían" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([koˈria] versus [koˈriãn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary Spanish text, does "corría" or "corrían" show up more?
"corría" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,566 in our Spanish list, against #24,081 for "corrían". 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 "corría" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "corrían" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #179,537 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "corría" and "corrían" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "caerían vs corrían". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #179,537 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