Which to use
“trabajan” and “trabajando” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,750
- “trabajan” frequency rank
- #1,072
- “trabajando” frequency rank
- 3822
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | trabajan | trabajando |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del plural (ellos, ellas; ustedes, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de trabajar. | Gerundio de trabajar. |
Where the eye mixes trabajan and trabajando
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. trabajan runs 8 letters (CCVCVCVC) against trabajando's 10 (CCVCVCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses trabajan with trabajando
A purely visual mix-up. trabajan ([t̪ɾaˈβ̞axãn]) and trabajando ([t̪ɾaβ̞aˈxãn̪d̪o]) 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) - “trabajan” sits inside “trabajando”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 3822, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
trabajan is recorded at frequency rank #2,750, classified as averb, pronounced [t̪ɾaˈβ̞axãn]. trabajando is at rank #1,072, tagged as averb, pronounced [t̪ɾaβ̞aˈxãn̪d̪o].
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 3822, this pair ranks #317,485 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of trabajan vs trabajando
Shared letters: abjnrt. Private to "trabajan": -. Private to "trabajando": do.
"trabajan" · 8 letters · shape CCVCVCVC · "trabajando" · 10 letters · shape CCVCVCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- trabajan ← rtabajan · tarbajan · traabjan · trabaajn · trabajann · trabajjan · trabajna · trabbajan
- trabajando ← rtabajando · tarbajando · traabjando · trabaajndo · trabajadno · trabajanddo · trabajanndo · trabajanod
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "trabajan" and "trabajando" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "trabajan" vs "trabajando" - 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 "trabajan" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "trabajando" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #317,485 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "trabajan" and "trabajando" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "trabada vs trabajan". 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 #317,485 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.