quebrarvsquererWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“quebrar” and “querer” are a confusable Spanish pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#18,364
“quebrar” frequency rank
#1,558
“querer” frequency rank
19922
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature quebrar querer
Definition Romper una cosa. Tener el deseo de hacer algo.

Where the eye mixes quebrar and querer

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.

7 ch
quebrar
6 ch
querer

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. quebrar ([keˈβ̞ɾaɾ]) and querer ([keˈɾeɾ]) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 19922, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

quebrar is recorded at frequency rank #18,364, classified as averb, pronounced [keˈβ̞ɾaɾ]. querer is at rank #1,558, tagged as averb, pronounced [keˈɾeɾ].

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 19922, this pair ranks #261,618 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of quebrar vs querer

Shared letters: eqru. Private to "quebrar": ab. Private to "querer": -.

"quebrar" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVC  ·  "querer" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • quebrarqeubrar · qquebrar · quberar · quebarr · quebbrar · quebrarr · quebrra · quebrrar
  • quererqeurer · qquerer · queerr · quererr · querre · querrer · qureer · uqerer

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "quebrar" and "querer" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([keˈβ̞ɾaɾ] versus [keˈɾeɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "quebrar" or "querer"?
"querer" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,558 in our Spanish list, against #18,364 for "quebrar". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list