Which to use
“centre” and “contrae” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,041
- “centre” frequency rank
- #22,625
- “contrae” frequency rank
- 37666
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | centre | contrae |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de centrar. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de contraer o de contraerse. |
Where the eye mixes centre and contrae
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses centre with contrae
A purely visual mix-up. centre ([ˈsẽn̪t̪ɾe]) and contrae ([kõn̪ˈt̪ɾae]) 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 37666, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
centre is recorded at frequency rank #15,041, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈsẽn̪t̪ɾe]. contrae is at rank #22,625, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõn̪ˈt̪ɾae].
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 37666, this pair ranks #174,117 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of centre vs contrae
Shared letters: cenrt. Private to "centre": -. Private to "contrae": ao.
"centre" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV · "contrae" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "centre" for "contrae" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "centre" or "contrae" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "centre" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "contrae" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #174,117 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "centre" and "contrae" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "contrae vs costra". 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 #174,117 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.