establecenvsestablecióWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#9,292
“establecen” frequency rank
#5,508
“estableció” frequency rank
14800
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature establecen estableció
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de establecer o de establecerse. Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de establecer o de establecerse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set establecen and estableció apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
establecen
10 ch
estableció

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. establecen ([est̪aˈβ̞lesẽn]) and estableció ([est̪aβ̞leˈsjo]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14800, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

establecen is recorded at frequency rank #9,292, classified as averb, pronounced [est̪aˈβ̞lesẽn]. estableció is at rank #5,508, tagged as averb, pronounced [est̪aβ̞leˈsjo].

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 14800, this pair ranks #282,675 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of establecen vs estableció

Shared letters: abcelst. Private to "establecen": n. Private to "estableció": .

"establecen" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCCVCVC  ·  "estableció" · 10 letters · shape VCCVCCVCVV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • establecenesatblecen · esstablecen · estabblecen · estabelcen · establceen · estableccen · establecenn · establecne

Frequency comparison

establecen#9,292
estableció#5,508

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "establecen" and "estableció" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([est̪aˈβ̞lesẽn] versus [est̪aβ̞leˈsjo]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "establecen" or "estableció"?
"estableció" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,508 in our Spanish list, against #9,292 for "establecen". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering establecen vs estableció

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 “establecen” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list