Which to use
“pasados” is a participle and “pasivos” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,096
- “pasados” frequency rank
- #14,909
- “pasivos” frequency rank
- 21005
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pasados | pasivos |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Forma del plural de pasado, participio de pasar. | Forma del masculino plural de pasivo. |
Where the eye mixes pasados and pasivos
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between pasados and pasivos
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pasados is [paˈsað̞os] while pasivos is [paˈsiβ̞os]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (participle vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21005, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pasados is recorded at frequency rank #6,096, classified as aparticiple, pronounced [paˈsað̞os]. pasivos is at rank #14,909, tagged as anadj, pronounced [paˈsiβ̞os].
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 21005, this pair ranks #256,823 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of pasados vs pasivos
Shared letters: aops. Private to "pasados": d. Private to "pasivos": iv.
"pasados" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "pasivos" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "pasados" for "pasivos" ever safe?
Which is more common, "pasados" or "pasivos"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "pasados" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pasivos" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #256,823 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pasados" and "pasivos" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pasivos vs pésimos". 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 #256,823 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.