Which to use
“cadena” and “condena” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,539
- “cadena” frequency rank
- #3,686
- “condena” frequency rank
- 5225
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cadena | condena |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Serie de objetos entrelazados uno después de otro, especialmente eslabones metálicos. | Acción y resultado de condenar. |
Where the eye mixes cadena and condena
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: cadena vs condena
A purely visual mix-up. cadena ([kaˈð̞ena]) and condena ([kõn̪ˈd̪ena]) 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 5225, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cadena is recorded at frequency rank #1,539, classified as anoun, pronounced [kaˈð̞ena]. condena is at rank #3,686, tagged as anoun, pronounced [kõn̪ˈd̪ena].
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 5225, this pair ranks #314,178 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of cadena vs condena
Shared letters: acden. Private to "cadena": -. Private to "condena": o.
"cadena" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "condena" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cadena" for "condena" ever safe?
Frequency check: "cadena" vs "condena" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "cadena" and "condena" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "cadena" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "condena" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #314,178 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cadena" and "condena" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cadena vs cederá". 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 #314,178 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.