Which to use
“caer” and “caí” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,628
- “caer” frequency rank
- #11,538
- “caí” frequency rank
- 13166
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | caer | caí |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Moverse de arriba hacia abajo por efecto de la fuerza de gravedad. | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de caer o de caerse. |
Where the eye mixes caer and caí
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses caer with caí
A purely visual mix-up. caer ([kaˈeɾ]) and caí ([kaˈi]) 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 13166, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
caer is recorded at frequency rank #1,628, classified as averb, pronounced [kaˈeɾ]. caí is at rank #11,538, tagged as averb, pronounced [kaˈi].
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 13166, this pair ranks #288,872 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of caer vs caí
Shared letters: ac. Private to "caer": er. Private to "caí": í.
"caer" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "caí" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- caer ← caerr · ccaer · cear
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "caer" and "caí" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "caer" or "caí"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "caer" and "caí" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "caer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "caí" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #288,872 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "caer" and "caí" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "caí vs cuc". 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 #288,872 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.