Which to use
“obligaba” and “obligan” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #20,753
- “obligaba” frequency rank
- #10,188
- “obligan” frequency rank
- 30941
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | obligaba | obligan |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de obligar o de obligarse. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de obligar o de obligarse. |
Where the eye mixes obligaba and obligan
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. obligaba runs 8 letters (VCCVCVCV) against obligan's 7 (VCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between obligaba and obligan
A purely visual mix-up. obligaba ([oβ̞liˈɣ̞aβ̞a]) and obligan ([oˈβ̞liɣ̞ãn]) 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 30941, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
obligaba is recorded at frequency rank #20,753, classified as averb, pronounced [oβ̞liˈɣ̞aβ̞a]. obligan is at rank #10,188, tagged as averb, pronounced [oˈβ̞liɣ̞ãn].
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 30941, this pair ranks #209,569 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of obligaba vs obligan
Shared letters: abgilo. Private to "obligaba": -. Private to "obligan": n.
"obligaba" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCVCV · "obligan" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "obligaba" and "obligan" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "obligaba" or "obligan" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "obligaba" and "obligan" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "obligaba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "obligan" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #209,569 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "obligaba" and "obligan" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "obligaba vs obligaría". 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 #209,569 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.