cerrabavscerradaWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#22,600
“cerraba” frequency rank
#4,226
“cerrada” frequency rank
26826
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature cerraba cerrada
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de cerrar o de cerrarse. Forma del femenino de cerrado, participio de cerrar.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cerraba and cerrada apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
cerraba
7 ch
cerrada

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cerraba is [seˈraβ̞a] while cerrada is [seˈrað̞a]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - b in “cerraba” becomes d in “cerrada”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs participle), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26826, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

cerraba is recorded at frequency rank #22,600, classified as averb, pronounced [seˈraβ̞a]. 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 26826, this pair ranks #229,754 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of cerraba vs cerrada

Shared letters: acer. Private to "cerraba": b. Private to "cerrada": d.

"cerraba" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV  ·  "cerrada" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • cerrabaccerraba · ceraba · cerarba · cerraab · cerrabba · cerrava · cerrbaa · creraba
  • cerradaccerrada · cerarda · cerraad · cerradda · cerrdaa · crerada · ecrrada · serrada

Frequency comparison

cerraba#22,600
cerrada#4,226

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "cerraba" and "cerrada" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "cerraba" is a verb and "cerrada" a participle, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "cerraba" or "cerrada"?
"cerrada" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,226 in our Spanish list, against #22,600 for "cerraba". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering cerraba vs cerrada

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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