Which to use
“deber” and “decaer” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,112
- “deber” frequency rank
- #38,625
- “decaer” frequency rank
- 41737
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | deber | decaer |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (seguido del infinitivo) Estar o verse obligado de hacer algo. | Perder algo o alguien su fuerza, intensidad o valor. |
Where the eye mixes deber and decaer
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between deber and decaer
A purely visual mix-up. deber ([d̪eˈβ̞eɾ]) and decaer ([d̪ekaˈeɾ]) 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 41737, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
deber is recorded at frequency rank #3,112, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈβ̞eɾ]. decaer is at rank #38,625, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪ekaˈeɾ].
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 41737, this pair ranks #152,052 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of deber vs decaer
Shared letters: der. Private to "deber": b. Private to "decaer": ac.
"deber" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "decaer" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "deber" and "decaer" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "deber" or "decaer" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "deber" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "decaer" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #152,052 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "deber" and "decaer" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "decae vs decaer". 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 #152,052 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.