Which to use
“respondí” and “respondían” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #14,224
- “respondí” frequency rank
- #36,799
- “respondían” frequency rank
- 51023
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | respondí | respondían |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de responder. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de responder. |
Where the eye mixes respondí and respondían
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. respondí runs 8 letters (CVCCVCCV) against respondían's 10 (CVCCVCCVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses respondí with respondían
A purely visual mix-up. respondí ([respõn̪ˈd̪i]) and respondían ([respõn̪ˈd̪iãn]) 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 extra letter(s) - “respondí” sits inside “respondían”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51023, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
respondí is recorded at frequency rank #14,224, classified as averb, pronounced [respõn̪ˈd̪i]. respondían is at rank #36,799, tagged as averb, pronounced [respõn̪ˈd̪iãn].
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 51023, this pair ranks #100,108 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of respondí vs respondían
Shared letters: denoprsí. Private to "respondí": -. Private to "respondían": a.
"respondí" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV · "respondían" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCVVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "respondí" and "respondían" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "respondí" vs "respondían" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "respondí" and "respondían" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "respondí" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "respondían" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #100,108 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "respondí" and "respondían" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "responderán vs respondían". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #100,108 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.