quemabavsquemadoWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: quemaba is a verb, quemado is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“quemaba” is a verb and “quemado” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#38,331
“quemaba” frequency rank
#8,303
“quemado” frequency rank
46634
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature quemaba quemado
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del pretérito imperfecto de indicativo de quemar o de quemarse. Dicho de una persona: que tiene las facultades mentales disminuidas debido al consumo de sustancias que alteran el estado de conciencia.

Where the spellings diverge

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

7 ch
quemaba
7 ch
quemado

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

quemaba and quemado form a confusable pair in the Spanish index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46634, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

quemaba is recorded at frequency rank #38,331, classified as averb, pronounced [keˈmaβ̞a]. quemado is at rank #8,303, tagged as anadj, pronounced [keˈmað̞o].

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 46634, this pair ranks #124,637 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Frequency comparison

quemaba#38,331
quemado#8,303

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "quemaba" and "quemado" be used interchangeably?
No, "quemaba" and "quemado" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering quemaba vs quemado

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “quemaba”; for an adjective, it's “quemado”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “quemaba” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list