Which to use
“cerré” is a verb and “cobre” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #21,251
- “cerré” frequency rank
- #4,312
- “cobre” frequency rank
- 25563
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cerré | cobre |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de cerrar o de cerrarse. | Elemento químico, metálico y sólido, de número atómico 29 y símbolo Cu. Es un metal de color rojizo brillante, que se cubre de una leve capa de óxido negruzco al aire; es uno de los mejores conductores de la electricidad, después del oro y la plata. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cerré and cobre apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cerré is [seˈre] while cobre is [ˈkoβ̞ɾe]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25563, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cerré is recorded at frequency rank #21,251, classified as averb, pronounced [seˈre]. cobre is at rank #4,312, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkoβ̞ɾe].
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 25563, this pair ranks #235,872 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cerré vs cobre
Shared letters: cer. Private to "cerré": é. Private to "cobre": bo.
"cerré" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "cobre" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- cobre ← cbore · ccobre · cobbre · cober · cobrre · corbe · covre · ocbre
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "cerré" and "cobre" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "cerré" or "cobre"?
Remembering cerré vs cobre
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “cerré”; for a noun, it's “cobre”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “cerré” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable