destacarvsdestacarseWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#3,479
“destacar” frequency rank
#29,597
“destacarse” frequency rank
33076
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature destacar destacarse
Definition Poner de relieve, resaltar, llamar la atención. Destacar (uso pronominal de ...)

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set destacar and destacarse apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
destacar
10 ch
destacarse

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. destacar ([d̪est̪aˈkaɾ]) and destacarse ([d̪est̪aˈkaɾse]) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “destacar” sits inside “destacarse”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33076, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

destacar is recorded at frequency rank #3,479, classified as averb, pronounced [d̪est̪aˈkaɾ]. destacarse is at rank #29,597, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪est̪aˈkaɾse].

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 33076, this pair ranks #198,707 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of destacar vs destacarse

Shared letters: acderst. Private to "destacar": -. Private to "destacarse": -.

"destacar" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "destacarse" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • destacarddestacar · desatcar · desstacar · destaacr · destacarr · destaccar · destacra · destcaar
  • destacarseddestacarse · desatcarse · desstacarse · destaacrse · destacarce · destacares · destacarrse · destacarsse

Frequency comparison

destacar#3,479
destacarse#29,597

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "destacar" and "destacarse" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([d̪est̪aˈkaɾ] versus [d̪est̪aˈkaɾse]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "destacar" or "destacarse"?
"destacar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,479 in our Spanish list, against #29,597 for "destacarse". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering destacar vs destacarse

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “destacar” 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