depurarvsdurarWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#35,982
“depurar” frequency rank
#7,417
“durar” frequency rank
43399
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature depurar durar
Definition Limpiar, purificar. Continuar siendo, seguir existiendo, mantenerse en el mismo estado, permanecer en la misma situación, desarrollarse en el tiempo.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set depurar and durar apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
depurar
5 ch
durar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. depurar ([d̪epuˈɾaɾ]) and durar ([d̪uˈɾaɾ]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43399, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

depurar is recorded at frequency rank #35,982, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪epuˈɾaɾ]. durar is at rank #7,417, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪uˈɾaɾ].

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 43399, this pair ranks #142,850 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of depurar vs durar

Shared letters: adru. Private to "depurar": ep. Private to "durar": -.

"depurar" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "durar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • depurarddepurar · deppurar · depruar · depuarr · depurarr · depurra · depurrar · deuprar
  • durarddurar · druar · duarr · durarr · durrar · udrar

Frequency comparison

depurar#35,982
durar#7,417

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "depurar" and "durar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([d̪epuˈɾaɾ] versus [d̪uˈɾaɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "depurar" or "durar"?
"durar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,417 in our Spanish list, against #35,982 for "depurar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering depurar vs durar

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “depurar” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list