molestabavsmolestarWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#21,409
“molestaba” frequency rank
#7,759
“molestar” frequency rank
29168
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature molestaba molestar
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de molestar. Causar molestias o incomodidades de alguna clase.

Where the eye mixes molestaba and molestar

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. molestaba runs 9 letters (CVCVCCVCV) against molestar's 8 (CVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
molestaba
8 ch
molestar

Look-alike desk: molestaba vs molestar

A purely visual mix-up. molestaba ([molesˈt̪aβ̞a]) and molestar ([molesˈt̪aɾ]) 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 29168, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

molestaba is recorded at frequency rank #21,409, classified as averb, pronounced [molesˈt̪aβ̞a]. molestar is at rank #7,759, tagged as averb, pronounced [molesˈt̪aɾ].

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 29168, this pair ranks #218,355 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of molestaba vs molestar

Shared letters: aelmost. Private to "molestaba": b. Private to "molestar": r.

"molestaba" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCV  ·  "molestar" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • molestaba ← mloestaba · mmolestaba · moelstaba · molesatba · molesstaba · molestaab · molestabba · molestava
  • molestar ← mloestar · mmolestar · moelstar · molesatr · molesstar · molestarr · molestra · molesttar

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "molestaba" and "molestar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([molesˈt̪aβ̞a] versus [molesˈt̪aɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "molestaba" or "molestar"?
"molestar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,759 in our Spanish list, against #21,409 for "molestaba". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "molestaba" and "molestar" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "molestaba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "molestar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #218,355 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "molestaba" and "molestar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "molestar vs molestaron". 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 #218,355 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list