Which to use
“pasar” is a verb and “patán” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #381
- “pasar” frequency rank
- #39,908
- “patán” frequency rank
- 40289
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pasar | patán |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Llevar de un lugar a otro. | Falto de inteligencia y cultura. |
Where the eye mixes pasar and patán
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. pasar and patán follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: pasar vs patán
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pasar is [paˈsaɾ] while patán is [paˈt̪ãn]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 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 40289, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pasar is recorded at frequency rank #381, classified as averb, pronounced [paˈsaɾ]. 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 40289, this pair ranks #159,931 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pasar vs patán
Shared letters: ap. Private to "pasar": rs. Private to "patán": ntá.
"pasar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "patán" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- pasar ← apsar · paasr · pasarr · pasra · passar · ppasar · psaar
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "pasar" for "patán" ever safe?
Which is more common, "pasar" or "patán"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "pasar" 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 #159,931 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pasar" 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 #159,931 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.