cruzadovscruzarWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: cruzado is a adjective, cruzar is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“cruzado” is an adjective and “cruzar” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#8,501
“cruzado” frequency rank
#4,233
“cruzar” frequency rank
12734
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature cruzado cruzar
Definition Que lleva una cruz como parte del blasón. Pasar por un sitio atravesándolo.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cruzado and cruzar apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
cruzado
6 ch
cruzar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cruzado is [kɾuˈsað̞o] while cruzar is [kɾuˈsaɾ]. 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 (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12734, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

cruzado is recorded at frequency rank #8,501, classified as anadj, pronounced [kɾuˈsað̞o]. cruzar is at rank #4,233, tagged as averb, pronounced [kɾuˈsaɾ].

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 12734, this pair ranks #290,473 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of cruzado vs cruzar

Shared letters: acruz. Private to "cruzado": do. Private to "cruzar": -.

"cruzado" · 7 letters · shape CCVCVCV  ·  "cruzar" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • cruzadoccruzado · crruzado · cruazdo · cruzaddo · cruzaod · cruzdao · cruzzado · crzuado
  • cruzarccruzar · crruzar · cruazr · cruzarr · cruzra · cruzzar · crzuar · curzar

Frequency comparison

cruzado#8,501
cruzar#4,233

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "cruzado" and "cruzar" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "cruzado" is an adjective and "cruzar" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "cruzado" or "cruzar"?
"cruzar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,233 in our Spanish list, against #8,501 for "cruzado". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering cruzado vs cruzar

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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