íbamosvsiríamosWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#7,942
“íbamos” frequency rank
#40,905
“iríamos” frequency rank
48847
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature íbamos iríamos
Definition Primera persona del plural (nosotros, nosotras) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de ir o de irse. Primera persona del plural (nosotros, nosotras) del condicional de ir o de irse.

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
íbamos
7 ch
iríamos

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. íbamos ([ˈiβ̞amos]) and iríamos ([iˈɾiamos]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48847, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

íbamos is recorded at frequency rank #7,942, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈiβ̞amos]. iríamos is at rank #40,905, tagged as averb, pronounced [iˈɾiamos].

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 48847, this pair ranks #112,185 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of íbamos vs iríamos

Shared letters: amosí. Private to "íbamos": b. Private to "iríamos": ir.

"íbamos" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC  ·  "iríamos" · 7 letters · shape VCVVCVC

Frequency comparison

íbamos#7,942
iríamos#40,905

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "íbamos" and "iríamos" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈiβ̞amos] versus [iˈɾiamos]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "íbamos" or "iríamos"?
"íbamos" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,942 in our Spanish list, against #40,905 for "iríamos". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering íbamos vs iríamos

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 “íbamos” 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