muerdevsmueveWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#16,909
“muerde” frequency rank
#3,429
“mueve” frequency rank
20338
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature muerde mueve
Definition Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de morder. Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de mover.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set muerde and mueve apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
muerde
5 ch
mueve

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. muerde ([ˈmweɾð̞e]) and mueve ([ˈmweβ̞e]) 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 20338, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

muerde is recorded at frequency rank #16,909, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈmweɾð̞e]. mueve is at rank #3,429, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈmweβ̞e].

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 20338, this pair ranks #259,764 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of muerde vs mueve

Shared letters: emu. Private to "muerde": dr. Private to "mueve": v.

"muerde" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV  ·  "mueve" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • muerdemeurde · mmuerde · muedre · muerdde · muered · muerrde · murede · umerde
  • muevemeuve · mmueve · muebe · mueev · muevve · muvee · umeve

Frequency comparison

muerde#16,909
mueve#3,429

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "muerde" and "mueve" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈmweɾð̞e] versus [ˈmweβ̞e]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "muerde" or "mueve"?
"mueve" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,429 in our Spanish list, against #16,909 for "muerde". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering muerde vs mueve

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 “muerde” 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