Which to use
“obligar” and “obligue” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,002
- “obligar” frequency rank
- #20,142
- “obligue” frequency rank
- 29144
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | obligar | obligue |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Atar, ligar, precisar, mover eficazmente a alguna cosa, aunque sea repugnante al gusto y genio del que la ha de ejecutar. | Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de obligar o de obligarse. |
Where the eye mixes obligar and obligue
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. obligar (VCCVCVC) and obligue (VCCVCVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses obligar with obligue
A purely visual mix-up. obligar ([oβ̞liˈɣ̞aɾ]) and obligue ([oˈβ̞liɣ̞e]) 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 29144, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
obligar is recorded at frequency rank #9,002, classified as averb, pronounced [oβ̞liˈɣ̞aɾ]. obligue is at rank #20,142, tagged as averb, pronounced [oˈβ̞liɣ̞e].
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 29144, this pair ranks #218,472 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of obligar vs obligue
Shared letters: bgilo. Private to "obligar": ar. Private to "obligue": eu.
"obligar" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC · "obligue" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "obligar" for "obligue" ever safe?
Frequency check: "obligar" vs "obligue" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "obligar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "obligue" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #218,472 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "obligar" and "obligue" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "obligue vs obligues". 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 #218,472 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.