cuidarvscuideWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#3,240
“cuidar” frequency rank
#13,430
“cuide” frequency rank
16670
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature cuidar cuide
Definition Proteger algo o a alguien del daño o el desgaste. Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de cuidar o de cuidarse.

Where the eye mixes cuidar and cuide

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.

6 ch
cuidar
5 ch
cuide

Visual trap between cuidar and cuide

A purely visual mix-up. cuidar ([kwiˈð̞aɾ]) and cuide ([ˈkwið̞e]) 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 16670, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

cuidar is recorded at frequency rank #3,240, classified as averb, pronounced [kwiˈð̞aɾ]. cuide is at rank #13,430, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkwið̞e].

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 16670, this pair ranks #275,224 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of cuidar vs cuide

Shared letters: cdiu. Private to "cuidar": ar. Private to "cuide": e.

"cuidar" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "cuide" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • cuidarccuidar · ciudar · cudiar · cuiadr · cuidarr · cuiddar · cuidra · ucidar
  • cuideccuide · ciude · cudie · cuidde · cuied · ucide

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "cuidar" and "cuide" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([kwiˈð̞aɾ] versus [ˈkwið̞e]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "cuidar" vs "cuide" - which ranks higher?
"cuidar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,240 in our Spanish list, against #13,430 for "cuide". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "cuidar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "cuide" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #275,224 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "cuidar" and "cuide" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cuide vs cute". 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 #275,224 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