candadovscomandadoWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: candado is a noun, comandado is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“candado” is a noun and “comandado” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#19,048
“candado” frequency rank
#47,009
“comandado” frequency rank
66057
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature candado comandado
Definition Cerradura suelta, encerrada en una caja metálica y que por medio de una armella sirve para cerrar cualquier tipo de puerta batiente o deslizante. Participio de comandar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set candado and comandado apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
candado
9 ch
comandado

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: candado is [kãn̪ˈd̪að̞o] while comandado is [komãn̪ˈd̪að̞o]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 66057, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

candado is recorded at frequency rank #19,048, classified as anoun, pronounced [kãn̪ˈd̪að̞o]. comandado is at rank #47,009, tagged as averb, pronounced [komãn̪ˈd̪að̞o].

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 66057, this pair ranks #40,880 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of candado vs comandado

Shared letters: acdno. Private to "candado": -. Private to "comandado": m.

"candado" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV  ·  "comandado" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • candadoacndado · cadnado · canaddo · candaddo · candaod · canddado · canddao · canndado
  • comandadoccomandado · cmoandado · coamndado · comadnado · comanaddo · comandaddo · comandaod · comanddado

Frequency comparison

candado#19,048
comandado#47,009

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "candado" and "comandado" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "candado" is a noun and "comandado" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "candado" or "comandado"?
"candado" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,048 in our Spanish list, against #47,009 for "comandado". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering candado vs comandado

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “candado”; for a verb, it's “comandado”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “candado” 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