Which to use
“figurado” is an adjective and “figuran” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #36,580
- “figurado” frequency rank
- #10,343
- “figuran” frequency rank
- 46923
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | figurado | figuran |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Dicho de una expresión, palabra, estilo, etc.: metafórico, no literal. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de figurar. |
Where the eye mixes figurado and figuran
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between figurado and figuran
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: figurado is [fiɣ̞uˈɾað̞o] while figuran is [fiˈɣ̞uɾãn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46923, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
figurado is recorded at frequency rank #36,580, classified as anadj, pronounced [fiɣ̞uˈɾað̞o]. figuran is at rank #10,343, tagged as averb, pronounced [fiˈɣ̞uɾãn].
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 46923, this pair ranks #122,976 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of figurado vs figuran
Shared letters: afgiru. Private to "figurado": do. Private to "figuran": n.
"figurado" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCV · "figuran" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "figurado" for "figuran" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "figurado" or "figuran" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "figurado" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "figuran" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #122,976 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "figurado" and "figuran" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "figuraba vs figurado". 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 #122,976 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.