nombrabavsnombradaConfusable pair

Quick tell: nombraba is a verb, nombrada is a participle, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“nombraba” is a verb and “nombrada” is a participle - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#45,473
“nombraba” frequency rank
#14,660
“nombrada” frequency rank
60133
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature nombraba nombrada
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de nombrar. Forma del femenino de nombrado, participio de nombrar.

Where the eye mixes nombraba and nombrada

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.

8 ch
nombraba
8 ch
nombrada

Look-alike desk: nombraba vs nombrada

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: nombraba is [nõmˈbɾaβ̞a] while nombrada is [nõmˈbɾað̞a]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - b in “nombraba” becomes d in “nombrada”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs participle), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60133, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

nombraba is recorded at frequency rank #45,473, classified as averb, pronounced [nõmˈbɾaβ̞a]. nombrada is at rank #14,660, tagged as aparticiple, pronounced [nõmˈbɾað̞a].

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 60133, this pair ranks #60,028 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of nombraba vs nombrada

Shared letters: abmnor. Private to "nombraba": -. Private to "nombrada": d.

"nombraba" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCV  ·  "nombrada" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • nombrabanmobraba · nnombraba · nobmraba · nombarba · nombbraba · nombraab · nombrabba · nombrbaa
  • nombradanmobrada · nnombrada · nobmrada · nombarda · nombbrada · nombraad · nombradda · nombrdaa

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "nombraba" and "nombrada" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "nombraba" is a verb and "nombrada" a participle, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "nombraba" or "nombrada"?
"nombrada" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #14,660 in our Spanish list, against #45,473 for "nombraba". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "nombraba" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "nombrada" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #60,028 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "nombraba" and "nombrada" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nombraba vs nombradas". 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 #60,028 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list