fijarsevsfugarseWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#17,967
“fijarse” frequency rank
#39,769
“fugarse” frequency rank
57736
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fijarse fugarse
Definition Prestar atención a algo. Salir o alejarse, generalmente deprisa o sin ser notado, de algún encierro, persecución, peligro, opresión o situación indeseable.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set fijarse and fugarse apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
fijarse
7 ch
fugarse

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. fijarse ([fiˈxaɾse]) and fugarse ([fuˈɣ̞aɾse]) 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 57736, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fijarse is recorded at frequency rank #17,967, classified as averb, pronounced [fiˈxaɾse]. fugarse is at rank #39,769, tagged as averb, pronounced [fuˈɣ̞aɾse].

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 57736, this pair ranks #69,308 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of fijarse vs fugarse

Shared letters: aefrs. Private to "fijarse": ij. Private to "fugarse": gu.

"fijarse" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV  ·  "fugarse" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • fijarseffijarse · fiajrse · fijarce · fijares · fijarrse · fijarsse · fijasre · fijjarse
  • fugarseffugarse · fguarse · fuagrse · fugarce · fugares · fugarrse · fugarsse · fugasre

Frequency comparison

fijarse#17,967
fugarse#39,769

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fijarse" and "fugarse" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([fiˈxaɾse] versus [fuˈɣ̞aɾse]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "fijarse" or "fugarse"?
"fijarse" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,967 in our Spanish list, against #39,769 for "fugarse". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering fijarse vs fugarse

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 “fijarse” 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