Which to use
“acostar” and “acostarse” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #25,508
- “acostar” frequency rank
- #15,525
- “acostarse” frequency rank
- 41033
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | acostar | acostarse |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Echar o tender a alguno para que duerma o descanse, y con especialidad en la cama. | Tenderse, especialmente para dormir. |
Where the eye mixes acostar and acostarse
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. acostar runs 7 letters (VCVCCVC) against acostarse's 9 (VCVCCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: acostar vs acostarse
A purely visual mix-up. acostar ([akosˈt̪aɾ]) and acostarse ([akosˈt̪aɾse]) 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) - “acostar” sits inside “acostarse”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41033, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
acostar is recorded at frequency rank #25,508, classified as averb, pronounced [akosˈt̪aɾ]. acostarse is at rank #15,525, tagged as averb, pronounced [akosˈt̪aɾse].
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 41033, this pair ranks #155,851 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of acostar vs acostarse
Shared letters: acorst. Private to "acostar": -. Private to "acostarse": e.
"acostar" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC · "acostarse" · 9 letters · shape VCVCCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "acostar" and "acostarse" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "acostar" vs "acostarse" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "acostar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "acostarse" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #155,851 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "acostar" and "acostarse" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "acorta vs acostar". 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 #155,851 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.