Which to use
“pesada” is a participle and “pesar” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,214
- “pesada” frequency rank
- #526
- “pesar” frequency rank
- 6740
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pesada | pesar |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Forma del femenino de pesado, participio de pesar. | Establecer el peso o la masa de algo, en particular empleando un instrumento para tal efecto. |
Where the eye mixes pesada and pesar
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between pesada and pesar
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pesada is [peˈsað̞a] while pesar is [peˈsaɾ]. 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 (participle vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 6740, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pesada is recorded at frequency rank #6,214, classified as aparticiple, pronounced [peˈsað̞a]. pesar is at rank #526, tagged as averb, pronounced [peˈsaɾ].
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 6740, this pair ranks #309,912 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of pesada vs pesar
Shared letters: aeps. Private to "pesada": d. Private to "pesar": r.
"pesada" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "pesar" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "pesada" for "pesar" ever safe?
Frequency check: "pesada" vs "pesar" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "pesada" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pesar" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #309,912 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pesada" and "pesar" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "peladas vs pesada". 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 #309,912 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.