recibíanvsrecibieranWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#16,191
“recibían” frequency rank
#45,550
“recibieran” frequency rank
61741
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature recibían recibieran
Definition Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de recibir o de recibirse. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de subjuntivo de recibir o de recibirse.

Where the spellings diverge

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

8 ch
recibían
10 ch
recibieran

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. recibían ([resiˈβ̞iãn]) and recibieran ([resiˈβ̞jeɾãn]) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 61741, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

recibían is recorded at frequency rank #16,191, classified as averb, pronounced [resiˈβ̞iãn]. recibieran is at rank #45,550, tagged as averb, pronounced [resiˈβ̞jeɾãn].

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 61741, this pair ranks #54,385 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of recibían vs recibieran

Shared letters: abceinr. Private to "recibían": í. Private to "recibieran": -.

"recibían" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVVC  ·  "recibieran" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • recibieranercibieran · rceibieran · recbiieran · reccibieran · recibbieran · recibeiran · recibiearn · recibierann

Frequency comparison

recibían#16,191
recibieran#45,550

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "recibían" and "recibieran" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([resiˈβ̞iãn] versus [resiˈβ̞jeɾãn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "recibían" or "recibieran"?
"recibían" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,191 in our Spanish list, against #45,550 for "recibieran". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering recibían vs recibieran

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 “recibían” 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