Which to use
“cuidado” is a noun and “cuídate” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,081
- “cuidado” frequency rank
- #16,305
- “cuídate” frequency rank
- 17386
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cuidado | cuídate |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Acción o efecto de cuidar. | Segunda persona del singular (tú) del imperativo afirmativo de cuidarse (con el pronombre enclítico). |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cuidado and cuídate apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
cuidado and cuídate form a confusable pair in the Spanish index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17386, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cuidado is recorded at frequency rank #1,081, classified as anoun, pronounced [kwiˈð̞að̞o]. cuídate is at rank #16,305, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkwið̞at̪e].
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 17386, this pair ranks #272,329 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "cuidado" and "cuídate" be used interchangeably?
Remembering cuidado vs cuídate
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “cuidado”; for a verb, it's “cuídate”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “cuidado” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable