respondíavsrespondoWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#16,969
“respondía” frequency rank
#11,304
“respondo” frequency rank
28273
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature respondía respondo
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de responder. Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de indicativo de responder.

Where the spellings diverge

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

9 ch
respondía
8 ch
respondo

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. respondía ([respõn̪ˈd̪ia]) and respondo ([resˈpõn̪d̪o]) 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 28273, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

respondía is recorded at frequency rank #16,969, classified as averb, pronounced [respõn̪ˈd̪ia]. respondo is at rank #11,304, tagged as averb, pronounced [resˈpõn̪d̪o].

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 28273, this pair ranks #222,820 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of respondía vs respondo

Shared letters: denoprs. Private to "respondía": . Private to "respondo": -.

"respondía" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVV  ·  "respondo" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • respondoerspondo · repsondo · resopndo · respnodo · respodno · responddo · responndo · responod

Frequency comparison

respondía#16,969
respondo#11,304

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "respondía" and "respondo" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([respõn̪ˈd̪ia] versus [resˈpõn̪d̪o]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "respondía" or "respondo"?
"respondo" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,304 in our Spanish list, against #16,969 for "respondía". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering respondía vs respondo

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 “respondía” 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