cerdavscerradaWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: cerda is a noun, cerrada is a participle, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“cerda” is a noun and “cerrada” is a participle - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#15,804
“cerda” frequency rank
#4,226
“cerrada” frequency rank
20030
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature cerda cerrada
Definition Pelo largo y grueso que tienen los caballos en la crin y el cuello. Forma del femenino de cerrado, participio de cerrar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cerda and cerrada apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
cerda
7 ch
cerrada

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cerda is [ˈseɾð̞a] while cerrada is [seˈrað̞a]. 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 participle), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20030, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

cerda is recorded at frequency rank #15,804, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈseɾð̞a]. cerrada is at rank #4,226, tagged as aparticiple, pronounced [seˈrað̞a].

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 20030, this pair ranks #261,116 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of cerda vs cerrada

Shared letters: acder. Private to "cerda": -. Private to "cerrada": -.

"cerda" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "cerrada" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • cerdaccerda · cedra · cerad · cerdda · cerrda · creda · ecrda · serda
  • cerradaccerrada · cerarda · cerraad · cerradda · cerrdaa · crerada · ecrrada · serrada

Frequency comparison

cerda#15,804
cerrada#4,226

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "cerda" and "cerrada" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "cerda" is a noun and "cerrada" a participle, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "cerda" or "cerrada"?
"cerrada" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,226 in our Spanish list, against #15,804 for "cerda". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering cerda vs cerrada

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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