respaldovsrespondoWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#5,152
“respaldo” frequency rank
#11,304
“respondo” frequency rank
16456
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature respaldo respondo
Definition La parte de un mueble que descansa la espalda Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de indicativo de responder.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set respaldo and respondo apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
respaldo
8 ch
respondo

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: respaldo is [resˈpal̪d̪o] while respondo is [resˈpõn̪d̪o]. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16456, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

respaldo is recorded at frequency rank #5,152, classified as anoun, pronounced [resˈpal̪d̪o]. respondo is at rank #11,304, tagged as averb, pronounced [resˈpõn̪d̪o].

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 16456, this pair ranks #276,089 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of respaldo vs respondo

Shared letters: deoprs. Private to "respaldo": al. Private to "respondo": n.

"respaldo" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV  ·  "respondo" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • respaldoerspaldo · repsaldo · resapldo · respadlo · respalddo · respalldo · respalod · resplado
  • respondoerspondo · repsondo · resopndo · respnodo · respodno · responddo · responndo · responod

Frequency comparison

respaldo#5,152
respondo#11,304

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "respaldo" and "respondo" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "respaldo" is a noun and "respondo" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "respaldo" or "respondo"?
"respaldo" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,152 in our Spanish list, against #11,304 for "respondo". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering respaldo vs respondo

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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