quemarvsquepaWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#5,659
“quemar” frequency rank
#27,367
“quepa” frequency rank
33026
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature quemar quepa
Definition Prender fuego y hacer que la cosa arda hasta consumirse total o parcialmente. Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de caber.

Where the eye mixes quemar and quepa

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. quemar runs 6 letters (CVVCVC) against quepa's 5 (CVVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
quemar
5 ch
quepa

Look-alike desk: quemar vs quepa

A purely visual mix-up. quemar ([keˈmaɾ]) and quepa ([ˈkepa]) 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 33026, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

quemar is recorded at frequency rank #5,659, classified as averb, pronounced [keˈmaɾ]. quepa is at rank #27,367, tagged as averb, pronounced [ˈkepa].

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 33026, this pair ranks #198,967 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of quemar vs quepa

Shared letters: aequ. Private to "quemar": mr. Private to "quepa": p.

"quemar" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "quepa" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • quemar ← qeumar · qquemar · queamr · quemarr · quemmar · quemra · qumear · uqemar
  • quepa ← qeupa · qquepa · queap · queppa · qupea · uqepa

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "quemar" and "quepa" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([keˈmaɾ] versus [ˈkepa]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "quemar" or "quepa"?
"quemar" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,659 in our Spanish list, against #27,367 for "quepa". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "quemar" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "quepa" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #198,967 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "quemar" and "quepa" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "quepa vs Quero". 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 #198,967 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list