laborarvslibrarWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#39,309
“laborar” frequency rank
#21,049
“librar” frequency rank
60358
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature laborar librar
Definition Variante de labrar. Sacar o preservar a alguien de un trabajo, mal o peligro.

Where the spellings diverge

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

7 ch
laborar
6 ch
librar

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. laborar ([laβ̞oˈɾaɾ]) and librar ([liˈβ̞ɾaɾ]) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60358, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

laborar is recorded at frequency rank #39,309, classified as averb, pronounced [laβ̞oˈɾaɾ]. librar is at rank #21,049, tagged as averb, pronounced [liˈβ̞ɾaɾ].

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 60358, this pair ranks #59,221 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of laborar vs librar

Shared letters: ablr. Private to "laborar": o. Private to "librar": i.

"laborar" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "librar" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • laboraralborar · labborar · laboarr · laborarr · laborra · laborrar · labroar · laobrar
  • librarilbrar · lbirar · libarr · libbrar · librarr · librrar · lirbar · livrar

Frequency comparison

laborar#39,309
librar#21,049

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "laborar" and "librar" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([laβ̞oˈɾaɾ] versus [liˈβ̞ɾaɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "laborar" or "librar"?
"librar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,049 in our Spanish list, against #39,309 for "laborar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering laborar vs librar

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 “laborar” 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