Which to use
“ocurrían” and “ocurrir” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #43,749
- “ocurrían” frequency rank
- #4,628
- “ocurrir” frequency rank
- 48377
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ocurrían | ocurrir |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de ocurrir. | Aparecer algo sin una causa determinada, producirse espontáneamente. |
Where the eye mixes ocurrían and ocurrir
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. ocurrían runs 8 letters (VCVCCVVC) against ocurrir's 7 (VCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses ocurrían with ocurrir
A purely visual mix-up. ocurrían ([okuˈriãn]) and ocurrir ([okuˈriɾ]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48377, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ocurrían is recorded at frequency rank #43,749, classified as averb, pronounced [okuˈriãn]. ocurrir is at rank #4,628, tagged as averb, pronounced [okuˈriɾ].
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 48377, this pair ranks #114,828 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of ocurrían vs ocurrir
Shared letters: coru. Private to "ocurrían": aní. Private to "ocurrir": i.
"ocurrían" · 8 letters · shape VCVCCVVC · "ocurrir" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- ocurrir ← courrir · occurrir · ocrurir · ocurir · ocurirr · ocurrirr · ocurrri · oucrrir
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "ocurrían" and "ocurrir" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "ocurrían" vs "ocurrir" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "ocurrían" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ocurrir" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #114,828 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ocurrían" and "ocurrir" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ocurrían vs ocurridas". 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 #114,828 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.