Which to use
“combate” and “combates” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,387
- “combate” frequency rank
- #11,003
- “combates” frequency rank
- 13390
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | combate | combates |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Confrontación violenta entre personas o animales. | Forma del plural de combate. |
Where the eye mixes combate and combates
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: combate vs combates
A purely visual mix-up. combate ([kõmˈbat̪e]) and combates ([kõmˈbat̪es]) 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 extra letter(s) - “combate” sits inside “combates”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13390, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
combate is recorded at frequency rank #2,387, classified as anoun, pronounced [kõmˈbat̪e]. combates is at rank #11,003, tagged as anoun, pronounced [kõmˈbat̪es].
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 13390, this pair ranks #288,040 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of combate vs combates
Shared letters: abcemot. Private to "combate": -. Private to "combates": s.
"combate" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV · "combates" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "combate" for "combates" ever safe?
Frequency check: "combate" vs "combates" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "combate" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "combates" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #288,040 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "combate" and "combates" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "comba vs combate". 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 #288,040 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.