Which to use
“decide” is a verb and “décima” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,041
- “decide” frequency rank
- #11,562
- “décima” frequency rank
- 14603
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | decide | décima |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de decidir o de decidirse. | Cada parte de las diez en que se dividen ciertas medidas, como los grados en un termómetro, las micras, etc. |
Where the eye mixes decide and décima
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses decide with décima
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: decide is [d̪eˈsið̞e] while décima is [ˈd̪esima]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14603, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
decide is recorded at frequency rank #3,041, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈsið̞e]. décima is at rank #11,562, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈd̪esima].
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 14603, this pair ranks #283,468 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of decide vs décima
Shared letters: cdi. Private to "decide": e. Private to "décima": amé.
"decide" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "décima" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- decide ← dceide · ddecide · deccide · decdie · decidde · decied · deicde · deside
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "decide" and "décima" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "decide" or "décima"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "decide" and "décima" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "decide" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "décima" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #283,468 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "decide" and "décima" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "decí vs décima". 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 #283,468 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.