decaídovsdécimoWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: decaído is a verb, décimo is a num, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“decaído” is a verb and “décimo” is a num - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#44,678
“decaído” frequency rank
#8,794
“décimo” frequency rank
53472
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature decaído décimo
Definition Participio de decaer. Que ocupa el puesto siguiente al noveno en una serie ordenada. Ordinal del diez.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set decaído and décimo apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
decaído
6 ch
décimo

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: decaído is [d̪ekaˈið̞o] while décimo is [ˈd̪esimo]. 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 (verb vs num), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53472, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

decaído is recorded at frequency rank #44,678, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪ekaˈið̞o]. décimo is at rank #8,794, tagged as anum, pronounced [ˈd̪esimo].

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 53472, this pair ranks #87,705 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of decaído vs décimo

Shared letters: cdo. Private to "decaído": aeí. Private to "décimo": imé.

"decaído" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCV  ·  "décimo" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Frequency comparison

decaído#44,678
décimo#8,794

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "decaído" and "décimo" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "decaído" is a verb and "décimo" a num, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "decaído" or "décimo"?
"décimo" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,794 in our Spanish list, against #44,678 for "decaído". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering decaído vs décimo

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “decaído”; for a num, it's “décimo”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “decaído” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list