Which to use
“pagaban” and “pegaba” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,925
- “pagaban” frequency rank
- #23,894
- “pegaba” frequency rank
- 42819
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pagaban | pegaba |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de pagar. | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de pegar. |
Where the eye mixes pagaban and pegaba
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses pagaban with pegaba
A purely visual mix-up. pagaban ([paˈɣ̞aβ̞ãn]) and pegaba ([peˈɣ̞aβ̞a]) 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 42819, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pagaban is recorded at frequency rank #18,925, classified as averb, pronounced [paˈɣ̞aβ̞ãn]. pegaba is at rank #23,894, tagged as averb, pronounced [peˈɣ̞aβ̞a].
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 42819, this pair ranks #146,117 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pagaban vs pegaba
Shared letters: abgp. Private to "pagaban": n. Private to "pegaba": e.
"pagaban" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "pegaba" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "pagaban" for "pegaba" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "pagaban" or "pegaba" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "pagaban" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pegaba" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #146,117 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pagaban" and "pegaba" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pagaban vs paganas". 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 #146,117 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.