cargarvscriarConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#4,978
“cargar” frequency rank
#12,791
“criar” frequency rank
17769
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature cargar criar
Definition Juntar y disponer los objetos sobre una persona o animal para su transporte. Producir algo de la nada.

Where the eye mixes cargar and criar

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
cargar
5 ch
criar

Look-alike desk: cargar vs criar

A purely visual mix-up. cargar ([kaɾˈɣ̞aɾ]) and criar ([ˈkɾjaɾ]) 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 17769, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

cargar is recorded at frequency rank #4,978, classified as averb, pronounced [kaɾˈɣ̞aɾ]. criar is at rank #12,791, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkɾjaɾ].

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 17769, this pair ranks #270,760 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of cargar vs criar

Shared letters: acr. Private to "cargar": g. Private to "criar": i.

"cargar" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "criar" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • cargaracrgar · cagrar · caragr · cargarr · carggar · cargra · carrgar · ccargar
  • criarccriar · cirar · crair · criarr · crira · crriar · rciar

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "cargar" and "criar" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([kaɾˈɣ̞aɾ] versus [ˈkɾjaɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "cargar" or "criar"?
"cargar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,978 in our Spanish list, against #12,791 for "criar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "cargar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "criar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #270,760 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "cargar" and "criar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "criador vs criar". 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 #270,760 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list