gratavsgratisConfusable pair

Quick tell: grata is a noun, gratis is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“grata” is a noun and “gratis” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#17,157
“grata” frequency rank
#1,170
“gratis” frequency rank
18327
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature grata gratis
Definition Instrumento, generalmente usado por plateros y joyeros, que consiste en una escobilla de metal y sirve para dar lustre, limpiar, raspar o bruñir objetos, en particular los de color dorado y plateado. Que se da o hace sin un pago como contrapartida.

Where the eye mixes grata and gratis

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

5 ch
grata
6 ch
gratis

Visual trap between grata and gratis

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: grata is [ˈgɾat̪a] while gratis is [ˈgɾat̪is]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18327, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

grata is recorded at frequency rank #17,157, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈgɾat̪a]. gratis is at rank #1,170, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈgɾat̪is].

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 18327, this pair ranks #268,368 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of grata vs gratis

Shared letters: agrt. Private to "grata": -. Private to "gratis": is.

"grata" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV  ·  "gratis" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • gratagarta · ggrata · graat · gratta · grrata · grtaa · rgata
  • gratisgartis · ggratis · graits · gratiss · gratsi · grattis · grratis · grtais

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "grata" for "gratis" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "grata" is a noun and "gratis" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Frequency check: "grata" vs "gratis" - which ranks higher?
"gratis" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,170 in our Spanish list, against #17,157 for "grata". 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 "grata" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "gratis" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #268,368 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "grata" and "gratis" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gara vs grata". 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 #268,368 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