Which to use
“padece” and “parecen” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,211
- “padece” frequency rank
- #1,520
- “parecen” frequency rank
- 13731
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | padece | parecen |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de padecer. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de parecer o de parecerse. |
Where the eye mixes padece and parecen
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. padece runs 6 letters (CVCVCV) against parecen's 7 (CVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses padece with parecen
A purely visual mix-up. padece ([paˈð̞ese]) and parecen ([paˈɾesẽn]) 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 13731, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
padece is recorded at frequency rank #12,211, classified as averb, pronounced [paˈð̞ese]. parecen is at rank #1,520, tagged as averb, pronounced [paˈɾesẽn].
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 13731, this pair ranks #286,763 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of padece vs parecen
Shared letters: acep. Private to "padece": d. Private to "parecen": nr.
"padece" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "parecen" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "padece" and "parecen" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "padece" vs "parecen" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "padece" and "parecen" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "padece" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "parecen" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #286,763 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "padece" and "parecen" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "padece vs parce". 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 #286,763 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.