queríanvsqueríasWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#3,207
“querían” frequency rank
#8,045
“querías” frequency rank
11252
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature querían querías
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de querer. Segunda persona del singular (tú, vos) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de querer.

Where the eye mixes querían and querías

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

7 ch
querían
7 ch
querías

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. querían ([keˈɾiãn]) and querías ([keˈɾias]) 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 “querían” becomes s in “querías”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11252, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

querían is recorded at frequency rank #3,207, classified as averb, pronounced [keˈɾiãn]. querías is at rank #8,045, tagged as averb, pronounced [keˈɾias].

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 11252, this pair ranks #295,763 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of querían vs querías

Shared letters: aeqruí. Private to "querían": n. Private to "querías": s.

"querían" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVVC  ·  "querías" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "querían" and "querías" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([keˈɾiãn] versus [keˈɾias]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "querían" or "querías"?
"querían" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,207 in our Spanish list, against #8,045 for "querías". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list