Which to use
“funciona” and “funcionar” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,291
- “funciona” frequency rank
- #3,412
- “funcionar” frequency rank
- 4703
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | funciona | funcionar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de funcionar. | Realizar la o las funciones para lo que una labor o un mecanismo fue concebido. |
Where the eye mixes funciona and funcionar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between funciona and funcionar
A purely visual mix-up. funciona ([fũnˈsjona]) and funcionar ([fũnsjoˈnaɾ]) 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 extra letter(s) - “funciona” sits inside “funcionar”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4703, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
funciona is recorded at frequency rank #1,291, classified as averb, pronounced [fũnˈsjona]. funcionar is at rank #3,412, tagged as averb, pronounced [fũnsjoˈnaɾ].
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 4703, this pair ranks #315,446 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of funciona vs funcionar
Shared letters: acfinou. Private to "funciona": -. Private to "funcionar": r.
"funciona" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVVCV · "funcionar" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "funciona" for "funcionar" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "funciona" or "funcionar" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "funciona" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "funcionar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #315,446 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "funciona" and "funcionar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "funcionar vs funcionarán". 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 #315,446 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.