Which to use
“ocupaban” and “ocuparon” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,770
- “ocupaban” frequency rank
- #13,104
- “ocuparon” frequency rank
- 34874
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ocupaban | ocuparon |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de ocupar. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de ocupar. |
Where the eye mixes ocupaban and ocuparon
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. ocupaban and ocuparon follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCVCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: ocupaban vs ocuparon
A purely visual mix-up. ocupaban ([okuˈpaβ̞ãn]) and ocuparon ([okuˈpaɾõn]) 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 34874, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ocupaban is recorded at frequency rank #21,770, classified as averb, pronounced [okuˈpaβ̞ãn]. ocuparon is at rank #13,104, tagged as averb, pronounced [okuˈpaɾõn].
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 34874, this pair ranks #189,064 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of ocupaban vs ocuparon
Shared letters: acnopu. Private to "ocupaban": b. Private to "ocuparon": r.
"ocupaban" · 8 letters · shape VCVCVCVC · "ocuparon" · 8 letters · shape VCVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ocupaban" for "ocuparon" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "ocupaban" or "ocuparon" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "ocupaban" and "ocuparon" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "ocupaban" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ocuparon" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #189,064 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ocupaban" and "ocuparon" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ocupaban vs ocuparán". 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 #189,064 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.