quedanvsqueríanWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#1,271
“quedan” frequency rank
#3,207
“querían” frequency rank
4478
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature quedan querían
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de quedar o de quedarse. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de querer.

Where the eye mixes quedan and querían

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

6 ch
quedan
7 ch
querían

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. quedan ([ˈkeð̞ãn]) and querían ([keˈɾiãn]) 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 4478, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

quedan is recorded at frequency rank #1,271, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkeð̞ãn]. querían is at rank #3,207, tagged as averb, pronounced [keˈɾiãn].

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 4478, this pair ranks #315,998 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of quedan vs querían

Shared letters: aenqu. Private to "quedan": d. Private to "querían": .

"quedan" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "querían" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • quedanqeudan · qquedan · qudean · queadn · quedann · queddan · quedna · uqedan

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "quedan" and "querían" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈkeð̞ãn] versus [keˈɾiãn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "quedan" or "querían"?
"quedan" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,271 in our Spanish list, against #3,207 for "querían". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

You've compared "quedan" and "querían". Here's where to go from here.

  • Full dictionary entry for "quedan" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "querían" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #315,998 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "quedan" and "querían" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "quedáis vs quedan". 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

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list