decentevsdecirteWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: decente is a adjective, decirte is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“decente” is an adjective and “decirte” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#6,167
“decente” frequency rank
#3,043
“decirte” frequency rank
9210
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature decente decirte
Definition De proceder honesto, justo, debido Decir, con el enclítico te (pronombre).

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set decente and decirte apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
decente
7 ch
decirte

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: decente is [d̪eˈsẽn̪t̪e] while decirte is [d̪eˈsiɾt̪e]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 9210, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

decente is recorded at frequency rank #6,167, classified as anadj, pronounced [d̪eˈsẽn̪t̪e]. decirte is at rank #3,043, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈsiɾt̪e].

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 9210, this pair ranks #302,626 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of decente vs decirte

Shared letters: cdet. Private to "decente": n. Private to "decirte": ir.

"decente" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV  ·  "decirte" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • decentedceente · ddecente · deccente · decenet · decennte · decentte · decetne · decnete
  • decirtedceirte · ddecirte · deccirte · deciret · decirrte · decirtte · decitre · decrite

Frequency comparison

decente#6,167
decirte#3,043

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "decente" and "decirte" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "decente" is an adjective and "decirte" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "decente" or "decirte"?
"decirte" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,043 in our Spanish list, against #6,167 for "decente". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering decente vs decirte

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “decente”; for a verb, it's “decirte”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “decente” 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