Which to use
“alegaba” is a verb and “alegría” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #47,531
- “alegaba” frequency rank
- #2,146
- “alegría” frequency rank
- 49677
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | alegaba | alegría |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de alegar. | Sensación de contento que se produce debido a algo agradable. |
Where the eye mixes alegaba and alegría
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. alegaba (VCVCVCV) and alegría (VCVCCVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses alegaba with alegría
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: alegaba is [aleˈɣ̞aβ̞a] while alegría is [aleˈɣ̞ɾia]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49677, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
alegaba is recorded at frequency rank #47,531, classified as averb, pronounced [aleˈɣ̞aβ̞a]. alegría is at rank #2,146, tagged as anoun, pronounced [aleˈɣ̞ɾia].
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 49677, this pair ranks #107,468 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of alegaba vs alegría
Shared letters: aegl. Private to "alegaba": b. Private to "alegría": rí.
"alegaba" · 7 letters · shape VCVCVCV · "alegría" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- alegaba ← aelgaba · aleagba · alegaab · alegabba · alegava · alegbaa · aleggaba · algeaba
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "alegaba" for "alegría" ever safe?
Frequency check: "alegaba" vs "alegría" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "alegaba" and "alegría" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "alegaba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "alegría" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #107,468 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "alegaba" and "alegría" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "alegaba vs alojaba". 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 #107,468 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.