Which to use
“empeora” and “empeoran” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,231
- “empeora” frequency rank
- #40,794
- “empeoran” frequency rank
- 59025
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | empeora | empeoran |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de empeorar. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de empeorar. |
Where the eye mixes empeora and empeoran
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. empeora runs 7 letters (VCCVVCV) against empeoran's 8 (VCCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses empeora with empeoran
A purely visual mix-up. empeora ([ẽmpeˈoɾa]) and empeoran ([ẽmpeˈoɾãn]) 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) - “empeora” sits inside “empeoran”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 59025, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
empeora is recorded at frequency rank #18,231, classified as averb, pronounced [ẽmpeˈoɾa]. empeoran is at rank #40,794, tagged as averb, pronounced [ẽmpeˈoɾãn].
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 59025, this pair ranks #64,181 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of empeora vs empeoran
Shared letters: aemopr. Private to "empeora": -. Private to "empeoran": n.
"empeora" · 7 letters · shape VCCVVCV · "empeoran" · 8 letters · shape VCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "empeora" for "empeoran" ever safe?
Frequency check: "empeora" vs "empeoran" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "empeora" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "empeoran" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #64,181 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "empeora" and "empeoran" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "empeoran vs exploran". 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 #64,181 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.