Which to use
“cabe” and “cante” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,011
- “cabe” frequency rank
- #10,629
- “cante” frequency rank
- 12640
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cabe | cante |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Acción de atravesar la pierna en el camino de otro para hacerlo caer. | Acción o efecto de cantar. |
Where the eye mixes cabe and cante
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. cabe runs 4 letters (CVCV) against cante's 5 (CVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses cabe with cante
A purely visual mix-up. cabe ([ˈkaβ̞e]) and cante ([ˈkãn̪t̪e]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12640, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cabe is recorded at frequency rank #2,011, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkaβ̞e]. cante is at rank #10,629, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkãn̪t̪e].
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 12640, this pair ranks #290,807 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of cabe vs cante
Shared letters: ace. Private to "cabe": b. Private to "cante": nt.
"cabe" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "cante" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cabe" for "cante" ever safe?
Frequency check: "cabe" vs "cante" - 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 "cabe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "cante" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #290,807 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cabe" and "cante" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cante vs catre". 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 #290,807 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.