Which to use
“olvida” and “olvidaba” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,631
- “olvida” frequency rank
- #15,917
- “olvidaba” frequency rank
- 20548
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | olvida | olvidaba |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de olvidar o de olvidarse. | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de olvidar o de olvidarse. |
Where the eye mixes olvida and olvidaba
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. olvida runs 6 letters (VCCVCV) against olvidaba's 8 (VCCVCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: olvida vs olvidaba
A purely visual mix-up. olvida ([olˈβ̞ið̞a]) and olvidaba ([olβ̞iˈð̞aβ̞a]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “olvida” sits inside “olvidaba”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20548, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
olvida is recorded at frequency rank #4,631, classified as averb, pronounced [olˈβ̞ið̞a]. olvidaba is at rank #15,917, tagged as averb, pronounced [olβ̞iˈð̞aβ̞a].
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 20548, this pair ranks #258,854 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of olvida vs olvidaba
Shared letters: adilov. Private to "olvida": -. Private to "olvidaba": b.
"olvida" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV · "olvidaba" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "olvida" for "olvidaba" ever safe?
Which is more common, "olvida" or "olvidaba"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "olvida" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "olvidaba" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #258,854 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "olvida" and "olvidaba" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "olvidaba vs olvidarás". 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 #258,854 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.