Which to use
“graba” is a verb and “grabada” is a participle - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #13,052
- “graba” frequency rank
- #13,053
- “grabada” frequency rank
- 26105
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | graba | grabada |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de grabar. | Forma del femenino de grabado, participio de grabar. |
Where the eye mixes graba and grabada
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between graba and grabada
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: graba is [ˈgɾaβ̞a] while grabada is [gɾaˈβ̞að̞a]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “graba” sits inside “grabada”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs participle), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26105, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
graba is recorded at frequency rank #13,052, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈgɾaβ̞a]. grabada is at rank #13,053, tagged as aparticiple, pronounced [gɾaˈβ̞að̞a].
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 26105, this pair ranks #233,277 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of graba vs grabada
Shared letters: abgr. Private to "graba": -. Private to "grabada": d.
"graba" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "grabada" · 7 letters · shape CCVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "graba" for "grabada" ever safe?
Which is more common, "graba" or "grabada"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "graba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "grabada" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #233,277 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "graba" and "grabada" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gara vs graba". 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 #233,277 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.