Which to use
“patata” is a noun and “patea” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #16,664
- “patata” frequency rank
- #33,758
- “patea” frequency rank
- 50422
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | patata | patea |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (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. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de patear. |
Where the eye mixes patata and patea
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. patata runs 6 letters (CVCVCV) against patea's 5 (CVCVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses patata with patea
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: patata is [paˈt̪at̪a] while patea is [paˈt̪ea]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50422, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
patata is recorded at frequency rank #16,664, classified as anoun, pronounced [paˈt̪at̪a]. patea is at rank #33,758, tagged as averb, pronounced [paˈt̪ea].
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 50422, this pair ranks #103,290 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of patata vs patea
Shared letters: apt. Private to "patata": -. Private to "patea": e.
"patata" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "patea" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "patata" and "patea" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "patata" vs "patea" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "patata" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "patea" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #103,290 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "patata" and "patea" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "parca vs patea". 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 #103,290 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.