extrañanvsextrañarWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#36,041
“extrañan” frequency rank
#8,382
“extrañar” frequency rank
44423
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature extrañan extrañar
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de extrañar o de extrañarse. Apartar, privar a alguno del trato y comunicación que se tenía con él.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set extrañan and extrañar apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
extrañan
8 ch
extrañar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. extrañan ([eksˈt̪ɾaɲãn]) and extrañar ([ekst̪ɾaˈɲaɾ]) 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 a single letter - n in “extrañan” becomes r in “extrañar”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44423, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

extrañan is recorded at frequency rank #36,041, classified as averb, pronounced [eksˈt̪ɾaɲãn]. extrañar is at rank #8,382, tagged as averb, pronounced [ekst̪ɾaˈɲaɾ].

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 44423, this pair ranks #137,150 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of extrañan vs extrañar

Shared letters: aertxñ. Private to "extrañan": n. Private to "extrañar": -.

"extrañan" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCVC  ·  "extrañar" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCVC

Frequency comparison

extrañan#36,041
extrañar#8,382

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "extrañan" and "extrañar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([eksˈt̪ɾaɲãn] versus [ekst̪ɾaˈɲaɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "extrañan" or "extrañar"?
"extrañar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,382 in our Spanish list, against #36,041 for "extrañan". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering extrañan vs extrañar

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 “extrañan” 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