Which to use
“provocar” and “provocó” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,827
- “provocar” frequency rank
- #5,032
- “provocó” frequency rank
- 9859
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | provocar | provocó |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Producir una reacción de un sentimiento, inducir un estado diferente. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de provocar. |
Where the eye mixes provocar and provocó
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses provocar with provocó
A purely visual mix-up. provocar ([pɾoβ̞oˈkaɾ]) and provocó ([pɾoβ̞oˈko]) 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 9859, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
provocar is recorded at frequency rank #4,827, classified as averb, pronounced [pɾoβ̞oˈkaɾ]. provocó is at rank #5,032, tagged as averb, pronounced [pɾoβ̞oˈko].
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 9859, this pair ranks #300,607 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of provocar vs provocó
Shared letters: coprv. Private to "provocar": a. Private to "provocó": ó.
"provocar" · 8 letters · shape CCVCVCVC · "provocó" · 7 letters · shape CCVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- provocar ← porvocar · pprovocar · probocar · proovcar · provcoar · provoacr · provocarr · provoccar
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "provocar" and "provocó" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "provocar" or "provocó"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "provocar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "provocó" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #300,607 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "provocar" and "provocó" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "proveyó vs provocó". 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 #300,607 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.