Which to use
“quema” is a noun and “quemaba” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,348
- “quema” frequency rank
- #38,331
- “quemaba” frequency rank
- 44679
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | quema | quemaba |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Acción o efecto de quemar. | Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de quemar o de quemarse. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set quema and quemaba apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
quema and quemaba form a confusable pair in the Spanish index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “quema” sits inside “quemaba” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44679, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
quema is recorded at frequency rank #6,348, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈkema]. quemaba is at rank #38,331, tagged as averb, pronounced [keˈmaβ̞a].
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 44679, this pair ranks #135,706 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "quema" and "quemaba" be used interchangeably?
Remembering quema vs quemaba
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “quema”; for a verb, it's “quemaba”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “quema” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable