cobrabavscomprabaConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#27,152
“cobraba” frequency rank
#19,957
“compraba” frequency rank
47109
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature cobraba compraba
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de cobrar. Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de comprar.

Where the eye mixes cobraba and compraba

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

7 ch
cobraba
8 ch
compraba

Visual trap between cobraba and compraba

A purely visual mix-up. cobraba ([koˈβ̞ɾaβ̞a]) and compraba ([kõmˈpɾaβ̞a]) 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 47109, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

cobraba is recorded at frequency rank #27,152, classified as averb, pronounced [koˈβ̞ɾaβ̞a]. compraba is at rank #19,957, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõmˈpɾaβ̞a].

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 47109, this pair ranks #121,887 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of cobraba vs compraba

Shared letters: abcor. Private to "cobraba": -. Private to "compraba": mp.

"cobraba" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV  ·  "compraba" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • cobrabacboraba · ccobraba · cobarba · cobbraba · cobraab · cobrabba · cobrbaa · cobrraba
  • comprabaccompraba · cmopraba · commpraba · comparba · comppraba · compraab · comprabba · comprava

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "cobraba" for "compraba" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([koˈβ̞ɾaβ̞a] versus [kõmˈpɾaβ̞a]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary Spanish text, does "cobraba" or "compraba" show up more?
"compraba" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,957 in our Spanish list, against #27,152 for "cobraba". 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 "cobraba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "compraba" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #121,887 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "cobraba" and "compraba" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "comportaba vs compraba". 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 #121,887 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