pateavspateoWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“patea” and “pateo” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#33,758
“patea” frequency rank
#46,713
“pateo” frequency rank
80471
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature patea pateo
Definition Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de patear. Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de indicativo de patear.

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
patea
5 ch
pateo

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. patea ([paˈt̪ea]) and pateo ([paˈt̪eo]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by a single letter - a in “patea” becomes o in “pateo”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 80471, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

patea is recorded at frequency rank #33,758, classified as averb, pronounced [paˈt̪ea]. pateo is at rank #46,713, tagged as averb, pronounced [paˈt̪eo].

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 80471, this pair ranks #11,608 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of patea vs pateo

Shared letters: aept. Private to "patea": -. Private to "pateo": o.

"patea" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV  ·  "pateo" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • pateaaptea · paeta · patae · pattea · ppatea · ptaea
  • pateoapteo · paeto · patoe · patteo · ppateo · ptaeo

Frequency comparison

patea#33,758
pateo#46,713

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "patea" and "pateo" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([paˈt̪ea] versus [paˈt̪eo]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "patea" or "pateo"?
"patea" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #33,758 in our Spanish list, against #46,713 for "pateo". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering patea vs pateo

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “patea” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list