quieravsquillaWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: quiera is a verb, quilla is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“quiera” is a verb and “quilla” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#1,122
“quiera” frequency rank
#33,301
“quilla” frequency rank
34423
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature quiera quilla
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de querer. Viga longitudinal ubicada en la parte del fondo de un barco, que es la base sobre la cual se construye toda su estructura.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set quiera and quilla apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
quiera
6 ch
quilla

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: quiera is [ˈkjeɾa] while quilla is [ˈkiʝa]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34423, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

quiera is recorded at frequency rank #1,122, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈkjeɾa]. quilla is at rank #33,301, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ˈkiʝa].

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 34423, this pair ranks #191,523 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of quiera vs quilla

Shared letters: aiqu. Private to "quiera": er. Private to "quilla": l.

"quiera" · 6 letters · shape CVVVCV  ·  "quilla" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • quieraqiuera · qquiera · queira · quiear · quierra · quirea · uqiera
  • quillaqiulla · qquilla · quila · quilal · qulila · uqilla

Frequency comparison

quiera#1,122
quilla#33,301

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "quiera" and "quilla" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "quiera" is a verb and "quilla" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "quiera" or "quilla"?
"quiera" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,122 in our Spanish list, against #33,301 for "quilla". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering quiera vs quilla

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “quiera”; for a noun, it's “quilla”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “quiera” 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