Which to use
“caer” and “catar” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,628
- “caer” frequency rank
- #33,482
- “catar” frequency rank
- 35110
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | caer | catar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Moverse de arriba hacia abajo por efecto de la fuerza de gravedad. | Probar algo con el sentido del gusto, especialmente los alimentos. |
Where the eye mixes caer and catar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. caer runs 4 letters (CVVC) against catar's 5 (CVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between caer and catar
A purely visual mix-up. caer ([kaˈeɾ]) and catar ([kaˈt̪aɾ]) 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 35110, 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]. catar is at rank #33,482, tagged as averb, pronounced [kaˈt̪aɾ].
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 35110, this pair ranks #187,822 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of caer vs catar
Shared letters: acr. Private to "caer": e. Private to "catar": t.
"caer" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "catar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "caer" and "catar" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "caer" or "catar" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "caer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "catar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #187,822 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "caer" and "catar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "catar 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 #187,822 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.