Which to use
“preocupan” and “preocupar” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,855
- “preocupan” frequency rank
- #16,948
- “preocupar” frequency rank
- 25803
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | preocupan | preocupar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de preocupar o de preocuparse. | Mantener fijo el pensamiento en un asunto o suceso negativo o perjudicial, que causa temor o inquietud. |
Where the eye mixes preocupan and preocupar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: preocupan vs preocupar
A purely visual mix-up. preocupan ([pɾeoˈkupãn]) and preocupar ([pɾeokuˈpaɾ]) 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 - n in “preocupan” becomes r in “preocupar”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25803, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
preocupan is recorded at frequency rank #8,855, classified as averb, pronounced [pɾeoˈkupãn]. preocupar is at rank #16,948, tagged as averb, pronounced [pɾeokuˈpaɾ].
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 25803, this pair ranks #234,732 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of preocupan vs preocupar
Shared letters: aceopru. Private to "preocupan": n. Private to "preocupar": -.
"preocupan" · 9 letters · shape CCVVCVCVC · "preocupar" · 9 letters · shape CCVVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "preocupan" and "preocupar" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "preocupan" vs "preocupar" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "preocupan" and "preocupar" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "preocupan" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "preocupar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #234,732 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "preocupan" and "preocupar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "preocupar vs preocuparon". 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 #234,732 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.