Which to use
“dificultad” is a noun and “dificultar” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,238
- “dificultad” frequency rank
- #30,036
- “dificultar” frequency rank
- 34274
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | dificultad | dificultar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Contrariedad u obstáculo que se interpone en la consecución sin complicaciones de algún fin tal como llevar a cabo algo, llegar a algún lugar o comprender algo. | Poner dificultades, sean estas físicas, mediante obstáculos, o abstractas, alegando opiniones contrarias a una intención. |
Where the eye mixes dificultad and dificultar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. dificultad and dificultar follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Visual trap between dificultad and dificultar
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: dificultad is [d̪ifikul̪ˈt̪að̞] while dificultar is [d̪ifikul̪ˈt̪aɾ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - d in “dificultad” becomes r in “dificultar”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34274, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
dificultad is recorded at frequency rank #4,238, classified as anoun, pronounced [d̪ifikul̪ˈt̪að̞]. dificultar is at rank #30,036, tagged as averb, pronounced [d̪ifikul̪ˈt̪aɾ].
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 34274, this pair ranks #192,336 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of dificultad vs dificultar
Shared letters: acdfiltu. Private to "dificultad": -. Private to "dificultar": r.
"dificultad" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCVCCVC · "dificultar" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- dificultad ← ddificultad · dfiicultad · difciultad · difficultad · dificcultad · dificlutad · dificulatd · dificulltad
- dificultar ← ddificultar · dfiicultar · difciultar · difficultar · dificcultar · dificlutar · dificulatr · dificulltar
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "dificultad" and "dificultar" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "dificultad" or "dificultar"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "dificultad" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "dificultar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #192,336 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "dificultad" and "dificultar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "dificultan vs dificultar". 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 #192,336 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.