mamávsmodaConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#866
“mamá” frequency rank
#1,946
“moda” frequency rank
2812
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mamá moda
Definition Mujer con quien alguien tiene una relación filial, especialmente si fue engendrado por ella. Estilo popular en el vestir, actuar, pensar etc.

Where the eye mixes mamá and moda

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

4 ch
mamá
4 ch
moda

Visual trap between mamá and moda

A purely visual mix-up. mamá ([maˈma]) and moda ([ˈmoð̞a]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2812, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mamá is recorded at frequency rank #866, classified as anoun, pronounced [maˈma]. moda is at rank #1,946, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈmoð̞a].

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 2812, this pair ranks #319,592 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of mamá vs moda

Shared letters: am. Private to "mamá": á. Private to "moda": do.

"mamá" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "moda" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • modamdoa · mmoda · moad · modda · omda

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mamá" and "moda" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([maˈma] versus [ˈmoð̞a]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
In ordinary Spanish text, does "mamá" or "moda" show up more?
"mamá" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #866 in our Spanish list, against #1,946 for "moda". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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 "mamá" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "moda" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #319,592 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "mamá" and "moda" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "moda vs modal". 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 #319,592 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