Which to use
“sobran” and “subían” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,717
- “sobran” frequency rank
- #34,354
- “subían” frequency rank
- 47071
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sobran | subían |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de sobrar. | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de subir o de subirse. |
Where the eye mixes sobran and subían
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. sobran (CVCCVC) and subían (CVCVVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between sobran and subían
A purely visual mix-up. sobran ([ˈsoβ̞ɾãn]) and subían ([suˈβ̞iãn]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47071, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sobran is recorded at frequency rank #12,717, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈsoβ̞ɾãn]. subían is at rank #34,354, tagged as averb, pronounced [suˈβ̞iãn].
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 47071, this pair ranks #122,112 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of sobran vs subían
Shared letters: abns. Private to "sobran": or. Private to "subían": uí.
"sobran" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "subían" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- sobran ← osbran · sboran · sobarn · sobbran · sobrann · sobrna · sobrran · sorban
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "sobran" for "subían" ever safe?
Frequency check: "sobran" vs "subían" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "sobran" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "subían" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #122,112 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "sobran" and "subían" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "subían vs subís". 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 #122,112 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.