hacervshacerseWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“hacer” and “hacerse” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#63
“hacer” frequency rank
#1,732
“hacerse” frequency rank
1795
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature hacer hacerse
Definition Originar, crear, dar nacimiento. Llegar a ser, obtener cierto estatus por estudio o a través de un proceso.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set hacer and hacerse apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
hacer
7 ch
hacerse

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. hacer ([aˈseɾ]) and hacerse ([aˈseɾse]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “hacer” sits inside “hacerse”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1795, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hacer is recorded at frequency rank #63, classified as averb, pronounced [aˈseɾ]. hacerse is at rank #1,732, tagged as averb, pronounced [aˈseɾse].

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 1795, this pair ranks #321,450 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of hacer vs hacerse

Shared letters: acehr. Private to "hacer": -. Private to "hacerse": s.

"hacer" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "hacerse" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • hacerahcer · haccer · hacerr · hacre · haecr · haser · hcaer · hhacer
  • hacerseahcerse · haccerse · hacerce · haceres · hacerrse · hacersse · hacesre · hacrese

Frequency comparison

hacer#63
hacerse#1,732

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "hacer" and "hacerse" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([aˈseɾ] versus [aˈseɾse]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "hacer" or "hacerse"?
"hacer" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #63 in our Spanish list, against #1,732 for "hacerse". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering hacer vs hacerse

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “hacer” 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