demorarvsdemoreTell them apart

Which to use

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

#25,214
“demorar” frequency rank
#42,940
“demore” frequency rank
68154
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature demorar demore
Definition Retardar algún proceso o actividad. Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de demorar o de demorarse.

Where the eye mixes demorar and demore

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. demorar runs 7 letters (CVCVCVC) against demore's 6 (CVCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
demorar
6 ch
demore

Why the eye confuses demorar with demore

A purely visual mix-up. demorar ([d̪emoˈɾaɾ]) and demore ([d̪eˈmoɾe]) 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 68154, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

demorar is recorded at frequency rank #25,214, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪emoˈɾaɾ]. demore is at rank #42,940, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪eˈmoɾe].

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 68154, this pair ranks #35,249 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of demorar vs demore

Shared letters: demor. Private to "demorar": a. Private to "demore": -.

"demorar" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "demore" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • demorar ← ddemorar · demmorar · demoarr · demorarr · demorrar · demroar · deomrar · dmeorar
  • demore ← ddemore · demmore · demoer · demorre · demroe · deomre · dmeore · edmore

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "demorar" for "demore" ever safe?
No. They are said differently ([d̪emoˈɾaɾ] versus [d̪eˈmoɾe]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "demorar" or "demore"?
"demorar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #25,214 in our Spanish list, against #42,940 for "demore". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "demorar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "demore" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #35,249 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "demorar" and "demore" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "demore vs desire". 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 #35,249 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