variaciónvsvariacionesTell them apart

Which to use

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

#8,448
“variación” frequency rank
#7,503
“variaciones” frequency rank
15951
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature variación variaciones
Definition La acción y el efecto de variar. Forma del plural de variación.

Where the eye mixes variación and variaciones

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence. variación runs 9 letters (CVCVVCVVC) against variaciones's 11 (CVCVVCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

9 ch
variación
11 ch
variaciones

Visual trap between variación and variaciones

A purely visual mix-up. variación ([baɾjaˈsjõn]) and variaciones ([baɾjaˈsjones]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15951, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

variación is recorded at frequency rank #8,448, classified as anoun, pronounced [baɾjaˈsjõn]. variaciones is at rank #7,503, tagged as anoun, pronounced [baɾjaˈsjones].

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 15951, this pair ranks #278,105 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of variación vs variaciones

Shared letters: acinrv. Private to "variación": ó. Private to "variaciones": eos.

"variación" · 9 letters · shape CVCVVCVVC  ·  "variaciones" · 11 letters · shape CVCVVCVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • variaciones ← avriaciones · bariaciones · vairaciones · varaiciones · variacciones · variacinoes · variacioens · variacioness

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "variación" for "variaciones" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([baɾjaˈsjõn] versus [baɾjaˈsjones]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "variación" or "variaciones"?
"variaciones" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,503 in our Spanish list, against #8,448 for "variación". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "variación" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "variaciones" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #278,105 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "variación" and "variaciones" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "valuación vs variación". 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 #278,105 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