Which to use
“olvidar” and “olvídate” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,516
- “olvidar” frequency rank
- #16,166
- “olvídate” frequency rank
- 18682
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | olvidar | olvídate |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Perder el recuerdo o la memoria de algo. | Segunda persona del singular (tú) del imperativo afirmativo de olvidarse (con el pronombre enclítico). |
Where the eye mixes olvidar and olvídate
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: olvidar vs olvídate
A purely visual mix-up. olvidar ([olβ̞iˈð̞aɾ]) and olvídate ([olˈβ̞ið̞at̪e]) 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 18682, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
olvidar is recorded at frequency rank #2,516, classified as averb, pronounced [olβ̞iˈð̞aɾ]. olvídate is at rank #16,166, tagged as averb, pronounced [olˈβ̞ið̞at̪e].
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 18682, this pair ranks #266,894 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of olvidar vs olvídate
Shared letters: adlov. Private to "olvidar": ir. Private to "olvídate": etí.
"olvidar" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC · "olvídate" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- olvidar ← lovidar · olbidar · olivdar · ollvidar · olvdiar · olviadr · olvidarr · olviddar
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "olvidar" and "olvídate" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "olvidar" or "olvídate"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "olvidar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "olvídate" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #266,894 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "olvidar" and "olvídate" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "olvidar 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 #266,894 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.