Which to use
“ocurren” and “ocurría” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,931
- “ocurren” frequency rank
- #13,302
- “ocurría” frequency rank
- 20233
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ocurren | ocurría |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de ocurrir. | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de ocurrir. |
Where the eye mixes ocurren and ocurría
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. ocurren (VCVCCVC) and ocurría (VCVCCVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between ocurren and ocurría
A purely visual mix-up. ocurren ([oˈkurẽn]) and ocurría ([okuˈria]) 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 20233, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ocurren is recorded at frequency rank #6,931, classified as averb, pronounced [oˈkurẽn]. ocurría is at rank #13,302, tagged as averb, pronounced [okuˈria].
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 20233, this pair ranks #260,234 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ocurren vs ocurría
Shared letters: coru. Private to "ocurren": en. Private to "ocurría": aí.
"ocurren" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC · "ocurría" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- ocurren ← courren · occurren · ocruren · ocuren · ocurern · ocurrenn · ocurrne · oucrren
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ocurren" for "ocurría" ever safe?
Which is more common, "ocurren" or "ocurría"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "ocurren" and "ocurría" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "ocurren" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ocurría" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #260,234 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ocurren" and "ocurría" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ocurría vs ocurrían". 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 #260,234 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.