regresabavsregresanWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#19,543
“regresaba” frequency rank
#10,563
“regresan” frequency rank
30106
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature regresaba regresan
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de regresar o de regresarse. Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de regresar o de regresarse.

Where the eye mixes regresaba and regresan

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. regresaba runs 9 letters (CVCCVCVCV) against regresan's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
regresaba
8 ch
regresan

Look-alike desk: regresaba vs regresan

A purely visual mix-up. regresaba ([reɣ̞ɾeˈsaβ̞a]) and regresan ([reˈɣ̞ɾesãn]) 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 30106, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

regresaba is recorded at frequency rank #19,543, classified as averb, pronounced [reɣ̞ɾeˈsaβ̞a]. regresan is at rank #10,563, tagged as averb, pronounced [reˈɣ̞ɾesãn].

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 30106, this pair ranks #213,644 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of regresaba vs regresan

Shared letters: aegrs. Private to "regresaba": b. Private to "regresan": n.

"regresaba" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVCV  ·  "regresan" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • regresabaergresaba · regersaba · reggresaba · regreasba · regresaab · regresabba · regresava · regresbaa
  • regresanergresan · regersan · reggresan · regreasn · regresann · regresna · regressan · regrresan

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "regresaba" for "regresan" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([reɣ̞ɾeˈsaβ̞a] versus [reˈɣ̞ɾesãn]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary Spanish text, does "regresaba" or "regresan" show up more?
"regresan" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,563 in our Spanish list, against #19,543 for "regresaba". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "regresaba" and "regresan" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "regresaba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "regresan" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #213,644 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "regresaba" and "regresan" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "regresaba vs regresaré". 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 #213,644 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list