Which to use
“década” is a noun and “decaído” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,078
- “década” frequency rank
- #44,678
- “decaído” frequency rank
- 46756
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | década | decaído |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Período de diez años. | Participio de decaer. |
Where the eye mixes década and decaído
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. década runs 6 letters (CVCVCV) against decaído's 7 (CVCVVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses década with decaído
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: década is [ˈd̪ekað̞a] while decaído is [d̪ekaˈið̞o]. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46756, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
década is recorded at frequency rank #2,078, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈd̪ekað̞a]. decaído is at rank #44,678, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪ekaˈið̞o].
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 46756, this pair ranks #123,940 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of década vs decaído
Shared letters: acd. Private to "década": é. Private to "decaído": eoí.
"década" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "decaído" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "década" for "decaído" ever safe?
Which is more common, "década" or "decaído"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "década" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "decaído" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #123,940 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "década" and "decaído" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "decaído vs decid". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #123,940 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.