Which to use
“pasan” is a verb and “patán” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,692
- “pasan” frequency rank
- #39,908
- “patán” frequency rank
- 41600
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pasan | patán |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de pasar. | Falto de inteligencia y cultura. |
Where the eye mixes pasan and patán
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. pasan and patán follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses pasan with patán
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pasan is [ˈpasãn] while patán is [paˈt̪ãn]. 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 (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41600, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pasan is recorded at frequency rank #1,692, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈpasãn]. patán is at rank #39,908, tagged as anadj, pronounced [paˈt̪ãn].
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 41600, this pair ranks #152,792 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pasan vs patán
Shared letters: anp. Private to "pasan": s. Private to "patán": tá.
"pasan" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "patán" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- pasan ← apsan · paasn · pasann · pasna · passan · ppasan · psaan
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "pasan" and "patán" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "pasan" or "patán"?
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 "pasan" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "patán" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #152,792 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pasan" and "patán" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "patán vs petar". 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 #152,792 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.