negravsneutraWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: negra is a noun, neutra is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“negra” is a noun and “neutra” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#1,686
“negra” frequency rank
#31,017
“neutra” frequency rank
32703
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature negra neutra
Definition Figura musical que vale un cuarto de la redonda, la mitad de la blanca y el doble de la corchea. Es representada con la cifra 4. Forma del femenino de neutro.

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
negra
6 ch
neutra

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: negra is [ˈneɣ̞ɾa] while neutra is [ˈnewt̪ɾa]. 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 (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32703, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

negra is recorded at frequency rank #1,686, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈneɣ̞ɾa]. neutra is at rank #31,017, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈnewt̪ɾa].

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 32703, this pair ranks #200,617 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of negra vs neutra

Shared letters: aenr. Private to "negra": g. Private to "neutra": tu.

"negra" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "neutra" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • negraengra · neggra · negrra · nerga · ngera · nnegra
  • neutraenutra · netura · neurta · neutar · neutrra · neuttra · nneutra · nuetra

Frequency comparison

negra#1,686
neutra#31,017

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "negra" and "neutra" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "negra" is a noun and "neutra" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "negra" or "neutra"?
"negra" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,686 in our Spanish list, against #31,017 for "neutra". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering negra vs neutra

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “negra”; for an adjective, it's “neutra”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “negra” 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