Which to use
“nombra” and “nombrar” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,386
- “nombra” frequency rank
- #6,570
- “nombrar” frequency rank
- 16956
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | nombra | nombrar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tercera persona del singular (él, ella, ello; usted, 2.ª persona) del presente de indicativo de nombrar. | Dar nombre a una persona, animal o cosa. |
Where the eye mixes nombra and nombrar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. nombra runs 6 letters (CVCCCV) against nombrar's 7 (CVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: nombra vs nombrar
A purely visual mix-up. nombra ([ˈnõmbɾa]) and nombrar ([nõmˈbɾaɾ]) 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 extra letter(s) - “nombra” sits inside “nombrar”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16956, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
nombra is recorded at frequency rank #10,386, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈnõmbɾa]. nombrar is at rank #6,570, tagged as averb, pronounced [nõmˈbɾaɾ].
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 16956, this pair ranks #274,094 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of nombra vs nombrar
Shared letters: abmnor. Private to "nombra": -. Private to "nombrar": -.
"nombra" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV · "nombrar" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "nombra" for "nombrar" ever safe?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "nombra" or "nombrar" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "nombra" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "nombrar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #274,094 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "nombra" and "nombrar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nombra vs nombren". 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 #274,094 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.