A common mistake I see in written Spanish are with the verbs BOTAR and VOTAR and how sometimes a person writes Botar instead of Votar and vice versa. This is common among native speakers.
Why is this?
According to the Real Academia Española, the letters B and V are pronounced exactly the same in all Spanish-speaking countries.
No existe en español diferencia alguna en la pronunciación de las letras B y V. Las dos presentan hoy el sonido bilabial sonoro /b/. – Real Academia Española
This means that Botar and Votar are homonyms (= words that are pronounced the same but are different in meaning or sometimes spelling).
So, even though these two words sound the same, they both have a very different meaning:
Botar = (in English) to throw out; to throw away.
Botar = Arrojar, tirar, echar fuera a alguien o algo.
- Tienes que botar tus papeles, no los dejes ahí.
- No botes tu dinero comprando esa cosa inútil.
Votar = (in English) to vote.
Votar = Dar su voto en una elección de personas o en una reunión.
- Voy a votar por el candidato X en estas elecciones.
- No voté por el presidente actual.
The confusion about whether to use a B or V is not limited to these two words but many others. For example:
- Barón – Varón
- Baya – Vaya
- Grabar – Gravar
- Hierba – Hierva
- Tubo – Tuvo
(There are many more)