Which to use
“race” is a verb and “raíces” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #14,436
- “race” frequency rank
- #3,653
- “raíces” frequency rank
- 18089
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | race | raíces |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de razar. | Origen de una persona, tanto familiar, como en cuanto al lugar de donde procede. |
Where the eye mixes race and raíces
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. race runs 4 letters (CVCV) against raíces's 6 (CVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: race vs raíces
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: race is [ˈrase] while raíces is [raˈises]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18089, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
race is recorded at frequency rank #14,436, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈrase]. raíces is at rank #3,653, tagged as anoun, pronounced [raˈises].
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 18089, this pair ranks #269,372 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of race vs raíces
Shared letters: acer. Private to "race": -. Private to "raíces": sí.
"race" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "raíces" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- race ← racce · raec · rase · rcae · rrace
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "race" and "raíces" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "race" or "raíces"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "race" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "raíces" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #269,372 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "race" and "raíces" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "race vs rajo". 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 #269,372 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.