Which to use
“gastar” and “gustan” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #5,210
- “gastar” frequency rank
- #1,547
- “gustan” frequency rank
- 6757
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gastar | gustan |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Provocar el consumo, deterioro o destrucción de algo por el uso. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de gustar. |
Where the eye mixes gastar and gustan
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: gastar vs gustan
A purely visual mix-up. gastar ([gasˈt̪aɾ]) and gustan ([ˈgust̪ãn]) 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 6757, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gastar is recorded at frequency rank #5,210, classified as averb, pronounced [gasˈt̪aɾ]. gustan is at rank #1,547, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈgust̪ãn].
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 6757, this pair ranks #309,881 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of gastar vs gustan
Shared letters: agst. Private to "gastar": r. Private to "gustan": nu.
"gastar" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "gustan" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "gastar" and "gustan" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "gastar" or "gustan" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "gastar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gustan" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #309,881 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gastar" and "gustan" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gastar vs gestar". 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 #309,881 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.