decidavsdecirConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#9,273
“decida” frequency rank
#131
“decir” frequency rank
9404
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature decida decir
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de decidir o de decidirse. Manifestar con palabras el pensamiento.

Where the eye mixes decida and decir

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

6 ch
decida
5 ch
decir

Why the eye confuses decida with decir

A purely visual mix-up. decida ([d̪eˈsið̞a]) and decir ([d̪eˈsiɾ]) 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 9404, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

decida is recorded at frequency rank #9,273, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈsið̞a]. decir is at rank #131, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈsiɾ].

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 9404, this pair ranks #302,051 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of decida vs decir

Shared letters: cdei. Private to "decida": a. Private to "decir": r.

"decida" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "decir" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • decidadceida · ddecida · deccida · decdia · deciad · decidda · deicda · desida
  • decirdceir · ddecir · deccir · decirr · decri · deicr · desir · edcir

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "decida" and "decir" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently ([d̪eˈsið̞a] versus [d̪eˈsiɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary Spanish text, does "decida" or "decir" show up more?
"decir" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #131 in our Spanish list, against #9,273 for "decida". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Useful next steps

Eye-level mix-up between "decida" and "decir" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "decida" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "decir" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #302,051 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "decida" and "decir" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "decida vs dolida". 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 #302,051 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