Which to use
“estar” and “evitar” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #148
- “estar” frequency rank
- #786
- “evitar” frequency rank
- 934
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | estar | evitar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Existir, hallarse alguien o algo con cierta permanencia y estabilidad en este o aquel lugar, situación, condición o modo actual de ser. | Precaver que suceda una cosa. |
Where the eye mixes estar and evitar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: estar vs evitar
A purely visual mix-up. estar ([esˈt̪aɾ]) and evitar ([eβ̞iˈt̪aɾ]) 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 934, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
estar is recorded at frequency rank #148, classified as averb, pronounced [esˈt̪aɾ]. evitar is at rank #786, tagged as averb, pronounced [eβ̞iˈt̪aɾ].
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 934, this pair ranks #322,780 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of estar vs evitar
Shared letters: aert. Private to "estar": s. Private to "evitar": iv.
"estar" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC · "evitar" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "estar" and "evitar" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "estar" or "evitar" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "estar" and "evitar" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "estar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "evitar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #322,780 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "estar" and "evitar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "evitar vs evitas". 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 #322,780 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.