Which to use
“obviar” is a verb and “obvio” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #30,167
- “obviar” frequency rank
- #2,462
- “obvio” frequency rank
- 32629
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | obviar | obvio |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Neutralizar o suprimir un obstáculo o inconveniente al ignorarlo, apartarlo, quitarlo etc. | Que es claro, comprensible y no amerita discusión ni explicación. |
Where the eye mixes obviar and obvio
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. obviar runs 6 letters (VCCVVC) against obvio's 5 (VCCVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses obviar with obvio
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: obviar is [oβ̞ˈbjaɾ] while obvio is [ˈoβ̞bjo]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32629, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
obviar is recorded at frequency rank #30,167, classified as averb, pronounced [oβ̞ˈbjaɾ]. obvio is at rank #2,462, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈoβ̞bjo].
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 32629, this pair ranks #200,996 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of obviar vs obvio
Shared letters: biov. Private to "obviar": ar. Private to "obvio": -.
"obviar" · 6 letters · shape VCCVVC · "obvio" · 5 letters · shape VCCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "obviar" and "obvio" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "obviar" or "obvio" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "obviar" and "obvio" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "obviar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "obvio" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #200,996 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "obviar" and "obvio" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "obviar vs obvios". 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 #200,996 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.