Which to use
“prohíben” and “prohibir” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #23,558
- “prohíben” frequency rank
- #6,104
- “prohibir” frequency rank
- 29662
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | prohíben | prohibir |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de prohibir. | Negar el permiso o la posibilidad para la ejecución de una acción (o modo de obrar) o para el uso, consumo o presencia de algo en determinadas circunstancias. |
Where the eye mixes prohíben and prohibir
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. prohíben and prohibir follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCVCVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: prohíben vs prohibir
A purely visual mix-up. prohíben ([pɾoˈiβ̞ẽn]) and prohibir ([pɾojˈβ̞iɾ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 29662, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
prohíben is recorded at frequency rank #23,558, classified as averb, pronounced [pɾoˈiβ̞ẽn]. prohibir is at rank #6,104, tagged as averb, pronounced [pɾojˈβ̞iɾ].
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 29662, this pair ranks #215,869 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of prohíben vs prohibir
Shared letters: bhopr. Private to "prohíben": ení. Private to "prohibir": i.
"prohíben" · 8 letters · shape CCVCVCVC · "prohibir" · 8 letters · shape CCVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- prohibir ← porhibir · pprohibir · prhoibir · prohbiir · prohhibir · prohibbir · prohibirr · prohibri
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "prohíben" and "prohibir" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "prohíben" or "prohibir"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "prohíben" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "prohibir" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #215,869 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "prohíben" and "prohibir" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "prohíba vs prohíben". 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 #215,869 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.