parabavsportabaWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“paraba” and “portaba” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#18,339
“paraba” frequency rank
#30,192
“portaba” frequency rank
48531
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature paraba portaba
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de parar o de pararse. Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de portar o de portarse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set paraba and portaba apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
paraba
7 ch
portaba

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. paraba ([paˈɾaβ̞a]) and portaba ([poɾˈt̪aβ̞a]) 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 48531, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

paraba is recorded at frequency rank #18,339, classified as averb, pronounced [paˈɾaβ̞a]. portaba is at rank #30,192, tagged as averb, pronounced [poɾˈt̪aβ̞a].

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 48531, this pair ranks #113,971 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of paraba vs portaba

Shared letters: abpr. Private to "paraba": -. Private to "portaba": ot.

"paraba" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "portaba" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • parabaapraba · paarba · paraab · parabba · parava · parbaa · parraba · pparaba
  • portabaoprtaba · poratba · porrtaba · portaab · portabba · portava · portbaa · porttaba

Frequency comparison

paraba#18,339
portaba#30,192

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "paraba" and "portaba" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([paˈɾaβ̞a] versus [poɾˈt̪aβ̞a]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "paraba" or "portaba"?
"paraba" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #18,339 in our Spanish list, against #30,192 for "portaba". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering paraba vs portaba

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “paraba” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list