decidívsdecidirTell them apart

Which to use

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

#4,877
“decidí” frequency rank
#2,769
“decidir” frequency rank
7646
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature decidí decidir
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito perfecto simple de indicativo de decidir o de decidirse. Zanjar una cuestión, tomar una resolución definitiva.

Where the eye mixes decidí and decidir

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

6 ch
decidí
7 ch
decidir

Look-alike desk: decidí vs decidir

A purely visual mix-up. decidí ([d̪esiˈð̞i]) and decidir ([d̪esiˈð̞iɾ]) 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 7646, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

decidí is recorded at frequency rank #4,877, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪esiˈð̞i]. decidir is at rank #2,769, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪esiˈð̞iɾ].

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 7646, this pair ranks #307,366 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of decidí vs decidir

Shared letters: cdei. Private to "decidí": í. Private to "decidir": r.

"decidí" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "decidir" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • decidirdceidir · ddecidir · deccidir · decdiir · deciddir · decidirr · decidri · deciidr

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "decidí" for "decidir" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([d̪esiˈð̞i] versus [d̪esiˈð̞iɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "decidí" vs "decidir" - which ranks higher?
"decidir" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,769 in our Spanish list, against #4,877 for "decidí". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "decidí" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "decidir" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #307,366 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "decidí" and "decidir" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "decaído vs decidí". 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 #307,366 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