Which to use
“olvidaba” and “olvidan” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,917
- “olvidaba” frequency rank
- #10,720
- “olvidan” frequency rank
- 26637
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | olvidaba | olvidan |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de olvidar o de olvidarse. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de olvidar o de olvidarse. |
Where the eye mixes olvidaba and olvidan
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. olvidaba runs 8 letters (VCCVCVCV) against olvidan's 7 (VCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses olvidaba with olvidan
A purely visual mix-up. olvidaba ([olβ̞iˈð̞aβ̞a]) and olvidan ([olˈβ̞ið̞ãn]) 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 26637, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
olvidaba is recorded at frequency rank #15,917, classified as averb, pronounced [olβ̞iˈð̞aβ̞a]. olvidan is at rank #10,720, tagged as averb, pronounced [olˈβ̞ið̞ãn].
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 26637, this pair ranks #230,667 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of olvidaba vs olvidan
Shared letters: adilov. Private to "olvidaba": b. Private to "olvidan": n.
"olvidaba" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCVCV · "olvidan" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "olvidaba" for "olvidan" ever safe?
Frequency check: "olvidaba" vs "olvidan" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "olvidaba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "olvidan" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #230,667 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "olvidaba" and "olvidan" 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 #230,667 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.