muerdevsmugreWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: muerde is a verb, mugre is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“muerde” is a verb and “mugre” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#16,909
“muerde” frequency rank
#20,131
“mugre” frequency rank
37040
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature muerde mugre
Definition Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de morder. Suciedad o porquería que ensucia la ropa o algún objeto.

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
muerde
5 ch
mugre

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: muerde is [ˈmweɾð̞e] while mugre is [ˈmuɣ̞ɾe]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37040, 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]. mugre is at rank #20,131, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈmuɣ̞ɾe].

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 37040, this pair ranks #177,446 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of muerde vs mugre

Shared letters: emru. Private to "muerde": d. Private to "mugre": g.

"muerde" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV  ·  "mugre" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • muerdemeurde · mmuerde · muedre · muerdde · muered · muerrde · murede · umerde
  • mugremgure · mmugre · muger · muggre · mugrre · murge · umgre

Frequency comparison

muerde#16,909
mugre#20,131

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "muerde" and "mugre" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "muerde" is a verb and "mugre" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "muerde" or "mugre"?
"muerde" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,909 in our Spanish list, against #20,131 for "mugre". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering muerde vs mugre

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “muerde”; for a noun, it's “mugre”.
  • 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