pasatevspatataWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: pasate is a verb, patata is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“pasate” is a verb and “patata” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#38,865
“pasate” frequency rank
#16,664
“patata” frequency rank
55529
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature pasate patata
Definition Segunda persona del singular (vos) del imperativo afirmativo de pasarse (con el pronombre «te» enclítico). (Solanum tuberosum) Planta herbácea, caducifolia, de la familia de las solanáceas, de tallo erecto o decumbente de hasta 1 m de largo, hojas imparipinnadas, de foliolos lanceolados, pilosas, y flores en inflorescencias terminales racemosas, de pétalos fusionados de color blanco a púrpura, que fructifican en pequeñas bayas. Se la aprecia por los tubérculos que produce su sistema radical, muy usados en gastronomía.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set pasate and patata apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
pasate
6 ch
patata

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pasate is [paˈsat̪e] while patata is [paˈt̪at̪a]. 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 noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 55529, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pasate is recorded at frequency rank #38,865, classified as averb, pronounced [paˈsat̪e]. patata is at rank #16,664, tagged as anoun, pronounced [paˈt̪at̪a].

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 55529, this pair ranks #78,464 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of pasate vs patata

Shared letters: apt. Private to "pasate": es. Private to "patata": -.

"pasate" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "patata" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • pasateapsate · paaste · pasaet · pasatte · pastae · ppasate · psaate
  • patataaptata · paatta · pataat · patatta · pattaa · pattata · ppatata · ptaata

Frequency comparison

pasate#38,865
patata#16,664

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pasate" and "patata" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "pasate" is a verb and "patata" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "pasate" or "patata"?
"patata" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,664 in our Spanish list, against #38,865 for "pasate". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering pasate vs patata

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “pasate”; for a noun, it's “patata”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “pasate” 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