grabevsgramaWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: grabe is a verb, grama is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“grabe” is a verb and “grama” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#35,533
“grabe” frequency rank
#44,221
“grama” frequency rank
79754
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature grabe grama
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de grabar. (Cynodon dactylon) Hierba de la familia de las gramíneas, tallo rastrero, hojas cortas y planas, flores en espigas. Mide entre diez y quince cm. de altura. Es cosmopolita e invade todo tipo de terrenos; se la considera una plaga. Los rizomas y estolones se usan en medicina natural en cocción como depurativo, diurético, expectorante y febrífugo.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set grabe and grama apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
grabe
5 ch
grama

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: grabe is [ˈgɾaβ̞e] while grama is [ˈgɾama]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 79754, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

grabe is recorded at frequency rank #35,533, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈgɾaβ̞e]. grama is at rank #44,221, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈgɾama].

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 79754, this pair ranks #12,590 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of grabe vs grama

Shared letters: agr. Private to "grabe": be. Private to "grama": m.

"grabe" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV  ·  "grama" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • grabegarbe · ggrabe · grabbe · graeb · grbae · grrabe · rgabe
  • gramagarma · ggrama · graam · gramma · grmaa · grrama · rgama

Frequency comparison

grabe#35,533
grama#44,221

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "grabe" and "grama" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "grabe" is a verb and "grama" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "grabe" or "grama"?
"grabe" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #35,533 in our Spanish list, against #44,221 for "grama". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering grabe vs grama

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “grabe”; for a noun, it's “grama”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “grabe” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list