Which to use
“cuestan” and “cueste” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #13,010
- “cuestan” frequency rank
- #10,647
- “cueste” frequency rank
- 23657
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cuestan | cueste |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de costar. | Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de costar. |
Where the eye mixes cuestan and cueste
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. cuestan runs 7 letters (CVVCCVC) against cueste's 6 (CVVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses cuestan with cueste
A purely visual mix-up. cuestan ([ˈkwest̪ãn]) and cueste ([ˈkwest̪e]) 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 23657, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cuestan is recorded at frequency rank #13,010, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkwest̪ãn]. cueste is at rank #10,647, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkwest̪e].
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 23657, this pair ranks #244,766 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of cuestan vs cueste
Shared letters: cestu. Private to "cuestan": an. Private to "cueste": -.
"cuestan" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVC · "cueste" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "cuestan" and "cueste" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "cuestan" vs "cueste" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "cuestan" and "cueste" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "cuestan" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "cueste" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #244,766 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cuestan" and "cueste" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cueste vs cute". 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 #244,766 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.