Which to use
“muela” is a noun and “muerda” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #21,412
- “muela” frequency rank
- #43,140
- “muerda” frequency rank
- 64552
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | muela | muerda |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Disco de piedra que girando sobre otro o sobre la solera, muele lo que se interpone entre ambas piedras. | Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de morder. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set muela and muerda apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
muela and muerda form a confusable pair in the Spanish index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 64552, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
muela is recorded at frequency rank #21,412, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈmwela]. muerda is at rank #43,140, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈmweɾð̞a].
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 64552, this pair ranks #45,243 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "muela" and "muerda" be used interchangeably?
Remembering muela vs muerda
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “muela”; for a verb, it's “muerda”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “muela” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable