Which to use
“perdían” is a verb and “perdido” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #32,795
- “perdían” frequency rank
- #1,178
- “perdido” frequency rank
- 33973
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | perdían | perdido |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de perder o de perderse. | Sin meta o rumbo determinado. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set perdían and perdido apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: perdían is [peɾˈð̞iãn] while perdido is [peɾˈð̞ið̞o]. 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 33973, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
perdían is recorded at frequency rank #32,795, classified as averb, pronounced [peɾˈð̞iãn]. perdido is at rank #1,178, tagged as anadj, pronounced [peɾˈð̞ið̞o].
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 33973, this pair ranks #193,887 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of perdían vs perdido
Shared letters: depr. Private to "perdían": aní. Private to "perdido": io.
"perdían" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC · "perdido" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- perdido ← eprdido · pedrido · perddido · perddio · perdiddo · perdiod · periddo · perrdido
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "perdían" and "perdido" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "perdían" or "perdido"?
Remembering perdían vs perdido
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “perdían”; for an adjective, it's “perdido”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “perdían” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable