cabervscavarWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“caber” and “cavar” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#27,126
“caber” frequency rank
#28,673
“cavar” frequency rank
55799
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature caber cavar
Definition Poder estar o ser contenido dentro de algo. Retirar la tierra para hacer un hoyo o una excavación.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set caber and cavar apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
caber
5 ch
cavar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. caber ([kaˈβ̞eɾ]) and cavar ([kaˈβ̞aɾ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 55799, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

caber is recorded at frequency rank #27,126, classified as averb, pronounced [kaˈβ̞eɾ]. cavar is at rank #28,673, tagged as averb, pronounced [kaˈβ̞aɾ].

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 55799, this pair ranks #77,295 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of caber vs cavar

Shared letters: acr. Private to "caber": be. Private to "cavar": v.

"caber" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "cavar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • caberacber · cabber · caberr · cabre · caebr · caver · cbaer · ccaber
  • cavaracvar · caavr · cavarr · cavvar · ccavar · cvaar

Frequency comparison

caber#27,126
cavar#28,673

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "caber" and "cavar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([kaˈβ̞eɾ] versus [kaˈβ̞aɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "caber" or "cavar"?
"caber" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #27,126 in our Spanish list, against #28,673 for "cavar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering caber vs cavar

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “caber” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list