provocabavsprovocanWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#31,070
“provocaba” frequency rank
#10,913
“provocan” frequency rank
41983
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature provocaba provocan
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de provocar. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de provocar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set provocaba and provocan apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
provocaba
8 ch
provocan

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. provocaba ([pɾoβ̞oˈkaβ̞a]) and provocan ([pɾoˈβ̞okãn]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41983, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

provocaba is recorded at frequency rank #31,070, classified as averb, pronounced [pɾoβ̞oˈkaβ̞a]. provocan is at rank #10,913, tagged as averb, pronounced [pɾoˈβ̞okãn].

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 41983, this pair ranks #150,691 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of provocaba vs provocan

Shared letters: acoprv. Private to "provocaba": b. Private to "provocan": n.

"provocaba" · 9 letters · shape CCVCVCVCV  ·  "provocan" · 8 letters · shape CCVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • provocabaporvocaba · pprovocaba · probocaba · proovcaba · provcoaba · provoacba · provocaab · provocabba
  • provocanporvocan · pprovocan · probocan · proovcan · provcoan · provoacn · provocann · provoccan

Frequency comparison

provocaba#31,070
provocan#10,913

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "provocaba" and "provocan" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([pɾoβ̞oˈkaβ̞a] versus [pɾoˈβ̞okãn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "provocaba" or "provocan"?
"provocan" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,913 in our Spanish list, against #31,070 for "provocaba". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering provocaba vs provocan

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 “provocaba” 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