Which to use
“contada” is a participle and “contrata” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #21,948
- “contada” frequency rank
- #12,561
- “contrata” frequency rank
- 34509
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | contada | contrata |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Forma del femenino de contado, participio de contar. | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de contratar. |
Where the eye mixes contada and contrata
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. contada runs 7 letters (CVCCVCV) against contrata's 8 (CVCCCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: contada vs contrata
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: contada is [kõn̪ˈt̪að̞a] while contrata is [kõn̪ˈt̪ɾat̪a]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (participle vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34509, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
contada is recorded at frequency rank #21,948, classified as aparticiple, pronounced [kõn̪ˈt̪að̞a]. contrata is at rank #12,561, tagged as averb, pronounced [kõn̪ˈt̪ɾat̪a].
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 34509, this pair ranks #191,057 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of contada vs contrata
Shared letters: acnot. Private to "contada": d. Private to "contrata": r.
"contada" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV · "contrata" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "contada" and "contrata" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "contada" or "contrata"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "contada" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "contrata" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #191,057 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "contada" and "contrata" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "constará vs contada". 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 #191,057 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.