explicavsexplicadaWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: explica is a verb, explicada is a participle, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“explica” is a verb and “explicada” is a participle - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#1,677
“explica” frequency rank
#28,371
“explicada” frequency rank
30048
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature explica explicada
Definition Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de explicar. Forma del femenino de explicado, participio de explicar.

Where the eye mixes explica and explicada

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.

7 ch
explica
9 ch
explicada

Why the eye confuses explica with explicada

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: explica is [eksˈplika] while explicada is [ekspliˈkað̞a]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “explica” sits inside “explicada”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs participle), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30048, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

explica is recorded at frequency rank #1,677, classified as averb, pronounced [eksˈplika]. explicada is at rank #28,371, tagged as aparticiple, pronounced [ekspliˈkað̞a].

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 30048, this pair ranks #213,914 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of explica vs explicada

Shared letters: aceilpx. Private to "explica": -. Private to "explicada": d.

"explica" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCV  ·  "explicada" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • explicaepxlica · exlpica · expilca · explcia · expliac · explicca · expllica · expplica
  • explicadaepxlicada · exlpicada · expilcada · explciada · expliacda · explicaad · explicadda · expliccada

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "explica" for "explicada" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "explica" is a verb and "explicada" a participle, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "explica" vs "explicada" - which ranks higher?
"explica" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,677 in our Spanish list, against #28,371 for "explicada". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "explica" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "explicada" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #213,914 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "explica" and "explicada" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "explicada vs explicados". 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 #213,914 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