pasabavspasaseWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#3,276
“pasaba” frequency rank
#33,263
“pasase” frequency rank
36539
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature pasaba pasase
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de pasar. Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de subjuntivo de pasar.

Where the eye mixes pasaba and pasase

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
pasaba
6 ch
pasase

Why the eye confuses pasaba with pasase

A purely visual mix-up. pasaba ([paˈsaβ̞a]) and pasase ([paˈsase]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36539, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pasaba is recorded at frequency rank #3,276, classified as averb, pronounced [paˈsaβ̞a]. pasase is at rank #33,263, tagged as averb, pronounced [paˈsase].

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 36539, this pair ranks #180,115 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of pasaba vs pasase

Shared letters: aps. Private to "pasaba": b. Private to "pasase": e.

"pasaba" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "pasase" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • pasabaapsaba · paasba · pasaab · pasabba · pasava · pasbaa · passaba · ppasaba
  • pasaseapsase · paasse · pasace · pasaes · pasasse · passae · passase · ppasase

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pasaba" and "pasase" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([paˈsaβ̞a] versus [paˈsase]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "pasaba" or "pasase"?
"pasaba" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,276 in our Spanish list, against #33,263 for "pasase". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "pasaba" and "pasase" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "pasaba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "pasase" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #180,115 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "pasaba" and "pasase" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pasase vs pasearse". 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 #180,115 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list