Which to use
“padecen” and “parece” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,190
- “padecen” frequency rank
- #166
- “parece” frequency rank
- 15356
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | padecen | parece |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de padecer. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de parecer o de parecerse. |
Where the eye mixes padecen and parece
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. padecen runs 7 letters (CVCVCVC) against parece's 6 (CVCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses padecen with parece
A purely visual mix-up. padecen ([paˈð̞esẽn]) and parece ([paˈɾese]) 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 15356, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
padecen is recorded at frequency rank #15,190, classified as averb, pronounced [paˈð̞esẽn]. parece is at rank #166, tagged as averb, pronounced [paˈɾese].
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 15356, this pair ranks #280,494 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of padecen vs parece
Shared letters: acep. Private to "padecen": dn. Private to "parece": r.
"padecen" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "parece" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "padecen" and "parece" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "padecen" vs "parece" - 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 "padecen" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "parece" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #280,494 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "padecen" and "parece" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "padecen vs padeció". 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 #280,494 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.