nombrarvsnombresWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#6,570
“nombrar” frequency rank
#1,221
“nombres” frequency rank
7791
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature nombrar nombres
Definition Dar nombre a una persona, animal o cosa. Forma del plural de nombre.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set nombrar and nombres apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
nombrar
7 ch
nombres

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: nombrar is [nõmˈbɾaɾ] while nombres is [ˈnõmbɾes]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 7791, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

nombrar is recorded at frequency rank #6,570, classified as averb, pronounced [nõmˈbɾaɾ]. nombres is at rank #1,221, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈnõmbɾes].

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 7791, this pair ranks #306,919 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of nombrar vs nombres

Shared letters: bmnor. Private to "nombrar": a. Private to "nombres": es.

"nombrar" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC  ·  "nombres" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • nombrarnmobrar · nnombrar · nobmrar · nombarr · nombbrar · nombrarr · nombrra · nombrrar
  • nombresnmobres · nnombres · nobmres · nombbres · nombers · nombress · nombrres · nombrse

Frequency comparison

nombrar#6,570
nombres#1,221

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "nombrar" and "nombres" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "nombrar" is a verb and "nombres" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "nombrar" or "nombres"?
"nombres" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,221 in our Spanish list, against #6,570 for "nombrar". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering nombrar vs nombres

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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