Which to use
“abrir” and “abrirse” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,464
- “abrir” frequency rank
- #13,175
- “abrirse” frequency rank
- 14639
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | abrir | abrirse |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Remover la tapa o la cubierta de algo, haciéndolo visible. | Abrir (uso pronominal de ...) |
Where the eye mixes abrir and abrirse
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. abrir runs 5 letters (VCCVC) against abrirse's 7 (VCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: abrir vs abrirse
A purely visual mix-up. abrir ([aˈβ̞ɾiɾ]) and abrirse ([aˈβ̞ɾiɾse]) 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) - “abrir” sits inside “abrirse”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14639, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
abrir is recorded at frequency rank #1,464, classified as averb, pronounced [aˈβ̞ɾiɾ]. abrirse is at rank #13,175, tagged as averb, pronounced [aˈβ̞ɾiɾse].
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 14639, this pair ranks #283,347 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of abrir vs abrirse
Shared letters: abir. Private to "abrir": -. Private to "abrirse": es.
"abrir" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC · "abrirse" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "abrir" and "abrirse" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "abrir" vs "abrirse" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "abrir" and "abrirse" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "abrir" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "abrirse" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #283,347 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "abrir" and "abrirse" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "abrirse vs abriste". 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 #283,347 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.