deudavsdudaWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#1,846
“deuda” frequency rank
#656
“duda” frequency rank
2502
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature deuda duda
Definition Obligación de pagar o satisfacer de otro modo un compromiso. Acción o efecto de dudar. Dificultad para elegir entre dos o más opciones, o suspensión de tal decisión.

Where the eye mixes deuda and duda

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

5 ch
deuda
4 ch
duda

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. deuda ([ˈd̪ewð̞a]) and duda ([ˈd̪uð̞a]) 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 2502, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

deuda is recorded at frequency rank #1,846, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈd̪ewð̞a]. duda is at rank #656, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈd̪uð̞a].

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 2502, this pair ranks #320,188 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of deuda vs duda

Shared letters: adu. Private to "deuda": e. Private to "duda": -.

"deuda" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV  ·  "duda" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • deudaddeuda · dedua · deuad · deudda · dueda · eduda
  • dudaddua · dduda · duad · dudda · udda

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "deuda" and "duda" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈd̪ewð̞a] versus [ˈd̪uð̞a]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "deuda" or "duda"?
"duda" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #656 in our Spanish list, against #1,846 for "deuda". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

You've compared "deuda" and "duda". Here's where to go from here.

  • Full dictionary entry for "deuda" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "duda" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #320,188 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "deuda" and "duda" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "deuda vs Deva". 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

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list