Which to use
“obtenía” and “obtenían” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #31,025
- “obtenía” frequency rank
- #43,151
- “obtenían” frequency rank
- 74176
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | obtenía | obtenían |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de obtener. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de obtener. |
Where the eye mixes obtenía and obtenían
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. obtenía runs 7 letters (VCCVCVV) against obtenían's 8 (VCCVCVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between obtenía and obtenían
A purely visual mix-up. obtenía ([oβ̞t̪eˈnia]) and obtenían ([oβ̞t̪eˈniãn]) 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 extra letter(s) - “obtenía” sits inside “obtenían”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 74176, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
obtenía is recorded at frequency rank #31,025, classified as averb, pronounced [oβ̞t̪eˈnia]. obtenían is at rank #43,151, tagged as averb, pronounced [oβ̞t̪eˈniãn].
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 74176, this pair ranks #21,822 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of obtenía vs obtenían
Shared letters: abenotí. Private to "obtenía": -. Private to "obtenían": -.
"obtenía" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVV · "obtenían" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCVVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "obtenía" and "obtenían" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "obtenía" or "obtenían"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "obtenía" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "obtenían" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #21,822 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "obtenía" and "obtenían" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "obtendrán vs obtenían". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #21,822 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.