molestanvsmolestandoConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#12,650
“molestan” frequency rank
#21,075
“molestando” frequency rank
33725
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature molestan molestando
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de molestar. Gerundio de molestar.

Where the eye mixes molestan and molestando

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. molestan runs 8 letters (CVCVCCVC) against molestando's 10 (CVCVCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

8 ch
molestan
10 ch
molestando

Look-alike desk: molestan vs molestando

A purely visual mix-up. molestan ([moˈlest̪ãn]) and molestando ([molesˈt̪ãn̪d̪o]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “molestan” sits inside “molestando”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33725, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

molestan is recorded at frequency rank #12,650, classified as averb, pronounced [moˈlest̪ãn]. molestando is at rank #21,075, tagged as averb, pronounced [molesˈt̪ãn̪d̪o].

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 33725, this pair ranks #195,213 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of molestan vs molestando

Shared letters: aelmnost. Private to "molestan": -. Private to "molestando": d.

"molestan" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC  ·  "molestando" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • molestan ← mloestan · mmolestan · moelstan · molesatn · molesstan · molestann · molestna · molesttan
  • molestando ← mloestando · mmolestando · moelstando · molesatndo · molesstando · molestadno · molestanddo · molestanndo

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "molestan" for "molestando" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([moˈlest̪ãn] versus [molesˈt̪ãn̪d̪o]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "molestan" vs "molestando" - which ranks higher?
"molestan" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,650 in our Spanish list, against #21,075 for "molestando". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "molestan" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "molestando" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #195,213 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "molestan" and "molestando" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "molestan 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 #195,213 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