catarvscatchTell them apart

Which to use

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

#33,482
“catar” frequency rank
#32,548
“catch” frequency rank
66030
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature catar catch
Definition Probar algo con el sentido del gusto, especialmente los alimentos. Coger.

Where the eye mixes catar and catch

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.

5 ch
catar
5 ch
catch

Look-alike desk: catar vs catch

A purely visual mix-up. catar ([kaˈt̪aɾ]) and catch (/kæt͡ʃ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 66030, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

catar is recorded at frequency rank #33,482, classified as averb, pronounced [kaˈt̪aɾ]. catch is at rank #32,548, tagged as averb, pronounced /kæt͡ʃ/.

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 66030, this pair ranks #40,947 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of catar vs catch

Shared letters: act. Private to "catar": r. Private to "catch": h.

"catar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "catch" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • cataractar · caatr · catarr · cattar · ccatar · ctaar
  • catchactch · cacth · catcch · catchh · cathc · cattch · ccatch · ctach

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "catar" and "catch" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([kaˈt̪aɾ] versus /kæt͡ʃ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "catar" or "catch"?
"catch" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #32,548 in our Spanish list, against #33,482 for "catar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "catar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "catch" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #40,947 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "catar" and "catch" 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 #40,947 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