recevsreírWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#38,335
“rece” frequency rank
#5,778
“reír” frequency rank
44113
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature rece reír
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de rezar. Reírse (emitir sonidos de alegría con la boca).

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set rece and reír apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
rece
4 ch
reír

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. rece ([ˈrese]) and reír ([reˈiɾ]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44113, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

rece is recorded at frequency rank #38,335, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈrese]. reír is at rank #5,778, tagged as averb, pronounced [reˈiɾ].

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 44113, this pair ranks #138,837 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of rece vs reír

Shared letters: er. Private to "rece": c. Private to "reír": í.

"rece" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "reír" · 4 letters · shape CVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • receerce · recce · reec · rese · rrece

Frequency comparison

rece#38,335
reír#5,778

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "rece" and "reír" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently ([ˈrese] versus [reˈiɾ]) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "rece" or "reír"?
"reír" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,778 in our Spanish list, against #38,335 for "rece". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering rece vs reír

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “rece” 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